Forgotten Memories
by jlandz09
Summary: Sequel to Taking Chances by Wohitzi. "Time is an illusion, and so is death." Aang wakes up without any memory of the last few months. Unfortunately, meeting an old friend at the mall is doomed complicate things. The question is, for the better? or worse?
1. The Story So Far & Prologue

The Story So Far

In Taking Chances, we learned that Aang is a modern-day Avatar, or someone who ushers spirits from one life to the next after death. But problems arose when Aang met a stubborn spirit named Toph.

At first, he had a knack for making her angry with his not-so-subtle suggestions to move on to her next life, which she was not ready to do. But eventually the two grew to become friends and made it a habit to spend adequate time with each other every day.

Meanwhile, problems arose in Aang's real-world life when he found out that his crush, Katara; and Zuko, his rival; had begun dating. Luckily for Aang, he had found a new friend in Toph that he could confide in with his feelings for Katara after feeling crushed by Zuko.

But things started changing when Aang and Toph began to have more intimate discussions with each other. Toph revealed to Aang how she died in a car crash on an icy night. They also talked about her regaining her eyesight after her death and Aang at one point even attempted describing Toph to herself.

Mingled in with Aang's real-world life with Katara and Sokka and his spirit-world life with Toph were frequent visits from Roku. Roku repeatedly warned Aang to not become attached to Toph because one way or another, she was going to have to move on. Aang's worry over the future of his best friend grew and grew until eventually he began to ignore Roku's warnings and decided that he would not force Toph into the next world; partly because of their newly developing feelings for each other that neither had admitted to at this point.

Unfortunately, Roku became angry and forced himself into Aang's body and locked Aang in the spirit world until Roku could have Toph moved on. Frustrated, Aang concentrated all he could on Toph and somehow made his way out of the spirit world. He caught up with Roku just in time, but reluctant to cause her friend any further problems, Toph decided that she would move on to her next life. The two shared a heart-filled goodbye and then Toph finally moved on.

Roku comforted a heartbroken Aang as much as he could and then allowed Aang back into his body.

Now, Aang has to adjust to life without his best friend, but things are changing and Aang will soon make discoveries that lead him to a whole new adventure.

Prologue

Aang woke up to a black sky with several stone pillars surrounding the ground that he lay on.

"Spirit world," he muttered to himself.

Suddenly Roku appeared before him and Aang respectfully bowed.

It had been two weeks since Toph had moved on and this was supposed to be his first day back at school after Kana finally was convinced that his sleep-walking fits were over. Why wouldn't his first day back at school be accompanied with his first trip back to the spirit world?

"Aang."

"Yes, Roku."

"You have had two weeks to recover, but now it is time for a talk."

"Oh no," Aang thought.

"You may have been justified in your feelings for the spirit, but that does not change the fact that you broke several rules and undermined my authority on numerous occasions. I cannot allow this to slip by unnoticeably."

"Oh. No." Aang thought.

"Because of your lack of respect for the better judgement of those from the spirit world, your powers are hereby suspended. You will have no access to the spirit world, and you will have no contact with any spirits for the next month. Do you understand?"

Aang did a double-take. "This is a punishment?" he thought.

"Ummm...yeah. Sure. I guess. Whatever you say Master Roku."

"Very well. One more thing though; you have lost the privilage of retaining the memory of anything related to the spirit of Toph Bei Fong. Is that understood?"

Aang's gasped. Roku couldn't be serious!

"Ummm...no. That is not understood. Why are you taking away my memory of her? That is all I have!"

"You saw things that no one should have seen; things that...broke the rules. I'm sorry Aang, but for your protection, I cannot allow you to retain those particular events, and to do that, I must also wipe your memory of Toph. I'm sorry."

Aang couldn't believe it. It was an outrage. First Roku steals his body, then he steals his best friend. He was not about to let his memory go lightly.

"No. You can't do that to me! I...I won't let you!"

"I'm sorry Aang, but unfortunately, it has already been done. When you wake up, you will remember none of this and in one month, it will be as if you never had your powers as the Avatar and you will have a fresh start. I'm sorry it has to be this way, but I tried to warn you not to be attached to any spirits."

"Yeah," Aang said, "I'm sorry too."

"Your time here runs short. You must go. Goodbye Aang, I'll see you in a month."

Again, under his breath, Aang whispered, "As if I'll remember it."

Then, with a flash, Aang woke up in his room, unaware that in time, he would get his memory back, along with a lot more problems than he bargained for.

* * *

**A/N: Thank you for sticking with the story this far. **

**I'd like to first of all say thank you to Wohitzi for being such a sport and letting me do this. If you have not read "Taking Chances" yet, then you really really really need to read it before reading this story. This story is taken directly after "Taking Chances" and is solely dependent on events that happen within that story. I want to congratulate Wohitzi for garnering a very decent number of readers for "Taking Chances" and I can only hope that I attract some of Wohitzi's readers for my sequel. If you read this first, you will certainly be lost. So, again, I want to extend my appreciation to Wohitzi for allowing me to go ahead and do this.**

**Now, I don't know about the rest of you who read Taking Chances, but personally (and this says nothing about the writing ability or style of Wohitzi) I was very disappointed and borderline emo at the end of that story. I felt so horrible for Aang and Toph that I couldn't bear to even think about this story. Then I got to thinking and decided that it wouldn't be such a bad idea for a sequel to this story. Well, my crazy mind reeled and reeled and finally came up with the perfect solution (and consequently more problems obviously) for Aang's and Toph's relationship.**

**Well, one thing led to another and I decided that this sequel needed to be heard, so I made contact with Wohitzi and I gained full permission** **to create, write, and post a sequel to "Taking Chances".**

**And so I did. The plots and subplots are buzzing about in my head right now and I personally am excited to see how I end up putting it all down.**

**One more announcement before I let you go on to Chapter 1. I have a beta-reader for this story in whom I fully trust for the criticism and editing of my sometimes jumbled up brain. She has already done a great job with this chapter and the next chapter and I am very excited to have Waffled Flambe as my beta for this story.**

**RR&E (Read, Review, and Enjoy!)**


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

"You sure look tired today," said Sokka.

"I had a long night," answered Aang.

"Yeah, I bet. You've been through a lot lately," said Katara.

"I know. Finals are today and I haven't even studied because I've been...what have I been doing?"

"You've been resting," answered Katara, "You've been acting very strange what with falling down stairs, and sleep-walking, and..."

"Wait, when was I sleep-walking?"

"Two weeks ago. You went all the way to the park," said Sokka.

"Weird. I don't remember sleep-walking."

"Ummm...duh? You were SLEEP-walking," said Sokka.

"Oh...right."

* * *

"Pupil Aang! Wake up!" shouted Coach Pakku. No one knew his first name. It was always just Pakku.

"Yes, Coach Pakku!"

School had been a drag the last week. He almost wished he could sleepwalk again and skip school some more. But it didn't matter at this point because Coach Pakku's class was the last of the day and there was only a few sec...

RRRIIIINNNNGGGGGG!!

...onds until the bell.

Aang ran outside to the bus and heard someone honking in the distance. He turned around and looked to see Sokka waving excitedly at him. But even more surprising was what Sokka seemed to be excited about.

Aang squinted and could barely make out something black next to Sokka in the parking lot.

"No way!" Aang yelled as he ran towards Sokka already knowing what it was. He had forgotten that Sokka took his driving test today and Kana had promised that right after his test, she would take Sokka and together they would pick a new family car. And he knew that Sokka had his eye on one in particular.

"You got the bug!!"

"I KNOW!!" yelled Sokka, still jumping up and down.

All of a sudden, Sokka stopped and turned to Aang, reaching in his pocket for something. And all at once, he yanked out something small and black. Aang heard a click and saw the shiny silver key pop out of the combination-clicker that came with Sokka's beetle.

Very quietly, with a giant smirk on his face, Sokka whispered, "You ready?"

Aang yelled in delight, "Yes! Yes! Where are we going?!"

"The mall, of course. Oh, and sorry, but I promised Suki that she would get first shotgun in the new car, so you're in the back."

"Psh! That's fine with me!" Aang shouted as he hopped in the back.

Sokka and Suki had basically been dating from birth. They were only born three days apart and Kana and Islo (Suki's mom) were fast friends to begin with, so the two little ones got to know each other really well. It was so obvious at age eight what would become of the two when Islo remarried with Suki as the flower girl and Sokka as the ring-bearer. They were so cute together that even if the two didn't like each other, they would end up married by sheer force of nature.

When Suki and Katara finally appeared, the four got into the bug and took off towards the mall.

* * *

Upon arrival at the mall, Aang was excited to spend the afternoon with his three best friends. Sure, Sokka and Suki would spend most of the time making out, but he would have Katara to hang out with, even though he knew that she was going out with Zuko now.

He wasn't quite sure why, but somehow after his two week hiatus from school he no longer felt threatened by Zuko. He was also pretty sure he didn't even have feelings for Katara anymore. He no longer gazed at her when she talked or when he was talking to her. He felt normal around her now, and surprisingly, he was OK with it. And once he had convinced himself of this, he didn't dwell on it; even when they hung out together.

But still, it didn't make him feel any better when Zuko, who had been driving for six months now, inevitably met up with them at the mall.

"Dang it. Fifth wheel," Aang thought.

They sat down at the mall's Chick-fil-A and began talking and conversing. Most of the meal however was just Sokka and Katara taking turns between talking and gazing at their respective "other".

"Hey Aang," Sokka said.

"Oh boy, I'm important again!" he thought.

"You know what you need?" Sokka asked.

"No, what?"

"A girlfriend."

Aang preferred fifth-wheeling.

"And why is that?" Zuko asked.

"Well, look at the poor kid. Here we are enjoying each other's company, and he's just sitting there being polite listening to us. Plus, if anyone deserves one, it's him after the past few weeks he's gone through."

"As annoying and intrusive as that is Sokka, you actually have a good point," said Katara.

"No," Aang thought, "this isn't awkward. Just keep going, I don't mind at all."

"Yeah," said Suki, "you could use someone to cheer you up. It's unfair for you to have to sit here and watch Sokka and Katara goggle at me and Zuko."

"Wow guys. Great idea. I'll get right on that. Because, as you know, I am so anxious to meet a girl and fall in love and have babies. In fact, why don't you just shout at the next girl that walks by alone and I'll swoon her with my manly charm."

"HEY YOU!" Sokka shouted.

Aang's jaw dropped.

"SARCASM, SOKKA!! You know how to use it, but you can't even recognize it when it's spoken to you?!"

"I know, I know. But you had a great idea. Who knows? Maybe it'll be the lucky girl."

"Yes, but I think Aang should have a hand in picking which girl he is flung upon on the whim of four bored friends," said Katara.

"True," said Sokka. "Alright then, you pick one, Aang."

"No. I'm not in the mood to indulge your shipping desires."

"Shipping?" asked Zuko.

"Don't worry about it, sweetie," said Katara, "You're just lucky that it doesn't happen to you."

"Fine then," said Sokka, "Random stranger it is...HEY Y-"

"FINE! I'LL DO IT!" shouted Aang.

He was not in the mood for this, but if he did pretend to look for some lonely girl (not likely to find at a mall) maybe they would forget about him and talk about something else. Plus, even if his feelings for Katara had dissipated, he was about to gag watching her and the angry jerk rubbing themselves all over each other.

At first, he didn't know where to walk. He figured he could walk toward the pet store, but that was really far away and he knew they wouldn't believe him if he went out of eyesight. It wasn't like he had plans to actually try and pick up a girl anyway, but if he could at least make conversation with one he knew they would leave him alone.

This thought led him to an idea. He would go up to a strange girl, explain what was happening, and get her to play along. He knew he was excellent at meeting people and the prospect of a game would probably entice whomever just that much more. He then set to looking for a candidate. He knew he'd get just plain weird stares from her if he picked a stereotypical "hot girl", but he didn't want to curse himself with a lonely ugly girl who would probably take the extra attention the wrong way. Sure, it was a jerky way to look at it, but he was in a jerky mood and he was in no position to care about some random stranger's feelings today.

He looked around and around and finally stopped on a girl he could barely see in the distance. She was out of eyesight of the Chick-fil-A but he knew that it was better because then he wouldn't have to sneak around so much when he explained his plan to her.

He started approaching her, but for some reason, even though he was looking right at her, she didn't notice him. Her black, ebony hair was in a bun and her bangs fell over her eyes so he figured that she wasn't paying any attention to anything taller than her knees. She was sitting alone on a bench that had just enough room for two.

Suddenly, she looked up as if she finally noticed him. She looked in his general direction, her hair still covering her eyes, but he felt like she was looking past him, like he was in the way of something. He stopped and turned around to make sure that there wasn't a boyfriend or parent or anyone coming to pick her up. The last thing he wanted to do was tick off a jock or some overprotective psychopath and get beat up over a girl he wasn't even actually trying to pick up.

But alas, all he saw was an empty store with darkened windows and a sign saying: "Coming Soon: GamePlace!" He decided that she must be looking at him.

He made his final approach and stopped in front of her.

"What do you want?" she asked. But she didn't look him in the eye. She kept her gaze forward, directly pointed at what was unfortunately his crotch. Uncomfortable, he moved to the left a little.

"Ummm, hi."

"Hi? That's all you wanted?"

"Well, no...I...uh..."

'Blast it! Why didn't I think through what I was going to say?!' he thought.

"Yoouuu what?... What?!"

"Pleasedon'tscream..." he said quickly, "Sorry. I just wanted to ask you something."

"Libra, now go away."

"No!...haha...No, no. Not that kind of question."

"Well, what kind of question did you want to ask?"

It was weird. After her initial few snaps, she backed off and seemed a lot calmer than before.

"Well, it takes a bit of explaining. You mind if I sit down?"

The girl nodded and then returned her gaze downward to what he realized was an iPod.

"Well, here's the thing. My friends are over at the Chick-fil-A and they're being really annoying and telling me that I should get a girlfriend."

"I already told you, Pisces."

"Wait...I thought you said Libra."

"Did I say Libra, I'm sorry, I meant Scorpio."

Aang laughed, finally getting that the girl was joking.

"Anyway, they were going to set me up with some random girl from the mall, but I convinced them to let me go find a random stranger. Now, I'm not actually trying to hook up with you, but could you bail me out and pretend like I really did ask you out or something?"

"Sure."

"Because if you do-...wait...really? That simple? No questions, no names?"

"Eh, I'm bored. But in exchange, I need you to find a song for me on my iPod."

"You need me to find you a song?"

"Yeah."

"It's your iPod isn't it?"

"Yeah, but the list is alphabetical and I can't remember whether the number artists are at the beginning or end of the list."

"And why do you need me to do this?"

The girl sighed and set the iPod down. With one hand she raised her bangs and with another she pointed at her milky jade eyes.

"Because I'm blind."

* * *

**A/N: I'm not sure how many people I threw since the characters in this story were listed as Toph and Aang. But even still, I hope you all are starting to theorize about how getting by with putting Toph back in it, even though I've left numerous hints here and there.**

**Sokka's car is a 2001 Black VW New Beetle, automatic, loaded. Why? Because that's what my car is. Creative, I know.**

**Big thanks again to my beta reader Waffled Flambe for not only reading and editing my story, but for enjoying it as well.**

**Realize that this chapter and the Prologue were written and then were posted at the same time, so there is no real-world time-lapse between the first two chapters. The next chapter you ask? Well, that depends on how reviews turn out. If review count sucks, then I'm going to assume no one is reading this and I'm going to sack it, which is truthfully what I should have done to my trilogy that got a total of like 4 or 5 reviews. Not complaining, but I am being realistic. If no one reads, I'm not going to kick myself trying to write this thing. I'm sorry if that makes me look like a butt, but it's what's gotta be done if I want to have any sanity.**

**RR&E (Read, Review, and Enjoy!)**


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"I'm so sorry...I...I didn-"

She put a finger to Aang's mouth without shifting her gaze. "It's ok. You didn't know."

The two sat for a little bit. Somewhat uncomfortable, but not because they were total strangers striking up conversation about personal issues like blindness, but more uncomfortable because of a sort of connection they already sensed with each other. It wasn't anything tangible, and neither of them would ever admit to it, but they knew in that moment that their acquaintance would develop into something that neither of them would ever be able to control.

"What's it like being blind?" Aang blurted out.

"It's not so bad, for me at least. I'm not like most blind people. I can see through vibrations in the ground. I had a dream one night and some old guy was in it and I asked him how I could, errr...see with my feet. He said that it was some spiritual mumbo-jumbo that made me special for some reason. I just kind of took his word for it. Why question it? At least I can see."

"He actually used the word mumbo-jumbo?"

They both laughed. Any uncomfortable feelings had gone away. Aang was surprised how quickly she opened up to him, especially after her attitude toward him when they first met.

"So, where do you live?" asked Aang.

"Not too far from the mall actually. I'm Mr. Bei Fong's daughter."

"What? I didn't know Mr. Bei Fong even had a daughter."

"No one does, except for you now."

"Really?" Aang asked surprisedly, "No one else knows who you are?"

"Nope. In fact, the only reason I'm out of the house today is because there were not enough guards at home. A bunch of them took a vacation together. Then, my dad went on a business trip and my mother works here at the mall. There was no option other than for me to sit here on this bench and listen to music all day until she got off work."

Aang was dumbfounded. He couldn't believe how sheltered this girl was.

"What about school?" he inquired.

"Home-school."

Aang facepalmed. 'Wow. Duh?' he thought. Then, facepalmed again remembering that she could feel vibrations.

"Hey, don't worry about it. It probably takes some getting used to," she stated.

Aang was confused. How could she know what he was thinking? She wasn't a mind-reader was she?

"So, what about friends?" he changed the subject.

"Well, sometimes the guards and maids have their kids come and play, but my parents pretend that I'm not their's because they don't want anyone to know who I am. So, they let the head guard pretend like I'm their daughter for the day."

"I...I'm so sorry. That must be awful to have your parents treat you like that."

"Eh. I've learned to not notice it. They only talk to me at dinner anyway and usually it's to ask me to go grab some condiment or seasoning that they forgot."

"So, you don't have any freedom, and you don't have any friends either?"

"What's your point?" she asked somewhat harshly, staring past him with her faded eyes.

"I'll be your friend," he said very matter-of-factly.

She paused. She didn't realize it was this easy to have a friend. She thought that you had to talk and laugh and play and hang out and watch movies or something! But this boy...guy just sits down and like it was nothing offers to be her friend? She didn't know how to respond. What would her parents think?

"They wouldn't have to know," she mumbled very softly.

"What was that?" Aang asked.

"Ummm...sure. I guess we could be friends..."

"Great!"

Toph jumped. He seemed so excited. Why was he so excited that she was his friend? And why, deep down inside, did she feel the same way?

"So, uh..." she stammered, "What do we do now?"

"I introduce you to my other friends."

"Really?" she asked.

"Of course. The more friends the better!"

"Mmok," she answered somewhat plainly.

"Oh, wait, before we go, realize that they think that you're my new girlfriend."

She stopped. She had forgotten about the whole reason he had even come over to her. Was this friendship just fake so that he could please his friends? She didn't want that. She didn't want another person in her life that just kind of left her whenever they were done. She didn't need that. After meeting this boy, she knew exactly what she needed. She needed a real friend.

"Wait," she stopped Aang, "what about after they meet me? What do we do after we convince them that I'm your girlfriend?"

Aang paused. He hadn't thought about that. He really liked her...er...as a new friend, and he knew that the last thing she needed was one more person to just leave her whenever she had served her purpose. She didn't need that. He knew what she needed. She needed a real friend.

"Well, after a few days, we can say that it didn't work out between us, but we wanted to stay friends. And then it will be like it never happened."

"Ok," she said. His plan sounded pretty good. It's not like they would have any trouble faking a break-up. These things happen all the time right?

"Oh, before we go, I should tell you my name so that it looks like we actually talked for more than 30 seconds. I'm Aa-...A-...AH CHOO!!"

Toph shuddered from his sneeze. "Bless you," she said, giggling.

"I'm Aang," he offered his hand.

With reluctance, she pinched the ends of his fingers, "I'm Toph."

Aang was comforted by the warmth of her hand. They were so small and petite that he didn't expect them to radiate so much.

"Well Toph, let's go then!"

* * *

"Hey," said Sokka, "Here comes Aang...and he got one!"

"Well I'll be," said Suki, "He sure did didn't he?"

"Awww, they're so cute together," exclaimed Katara.

"Hmmm, the little guy actually did it," pondered Zuko.

"Hey Aang, who ya got there?!" shouted Sokka.

"Tact Sokka, tact," scolded Suki hushedly.

"Guys, Zuko, this is Toph."

After the chuckles resided from Aang's jab at him, Zuko reached out his hand, "Hello Toph, My name is Zuko."

"I'm Katara."

"Sokka here."

"And I'm Suki."

Toph grabbed a chair and sat down at the table next to Aang.

"So Aang, how'd you do it?" Sokka asked, leaning across the table.

"Err, I don't know. I guess I just have my way with...women?" Aang gave a frantic glance at Toph hoping that she would see it and cover for him.

Then, he realized that he might as well have expected the wall to take notice of his expression.

"Please, are you kidding Twinkle Toes? You were so nervous walking over to me!"

Everyone laughed. They knew that Toph would fit right in.

"Umm, Twinkle Toes?" he hesitated to ask.

"I notice footsteps, and you might as well be a fancy dancer as girly as you walk."

Everyone exploded again.

"So, what about Aang convinced you to accept his offer Toph?" asked Suki joining Sokka with elbows on the table.

"Pity. Definitely pity."

Stares from around the restaurant began to turn toward the table which was once again in uproar, save for Aang, who was sliding farther and farther down into his chair. Why was she doing this?

"No, the real reason was that actually he was a really nice guy, and I figured, 'What the heck? No one's ever asked me out before. It might be fun.'"

The rest of the afternoon was spent getting to know Toph. She revealed her blindness and answered everyone's questions about how she could see. She also talked about why she was at the mall and then at five, explained that she needed to go back to the bench before her mother found out that she had been wandering around talking to strangers.

"Well, it was really nice meeting you Toph," said Katara.

"Yeah, we'll see you again right? Assuming Aang here doesn't chase you off?" quipped Sokka.

"I don't know. Today's the first day I've been allowed in the mall alone and I don't think my parents will be so anxious to let me do it again. Especially if they find out about all of this," she gestured to the entire table.

"Sneak out," suggested Sokka, begging for the upcoming sock in the arm from Katara.

"I don't know, I've never been blatantly disobedient before. If worse comes to worse I may have to try that. Well, I need to go now before my mom freaks. See you guys later, hopefully."

"Bye Toph! See ya! Have fun!" they all took turns shouting.

Sokka waited until Toph had turned the corner until he shouted, "YEAH BUDDY! YOU GOT HER MAN!!"

Toph smiled at how her sharpened hearing worked to her advantage once again.

* * *

The darkness of the spirit world was sometimes unbearable. But, being as accustomed to it as Roku and Kyoshi were, it didn't make much of a difference.

"Our plan is unfolding," said Kyoshi.

"Yes it is, but I don't feel comfortable lying to Aang," answered Roku.

"It is no matter, once he knows the truth, he will thank you for it."

"I'm not so sure. If he finds out what we have done, it may not matter how much good comes from it."

"We will have to see. Did he suspect anything when you told him?"

"No. He was too frustrated to think clearly and realize how unreasonable I was being."

"That is good."

Roku ran over the thought in his mind, "I suppose so," he finally vocalized.

"What of the girl?"

"I don't know. She has a natural attraction to the boy; we've seen that numerous times. When they realize that she is going to die, it could put everything we've worked for in jeopardy."

"Then let us hope," articulated Kyoshi, "that they do not find out."

* * *

**A/N: I apologize for the inevitable spelling and punctuation errors that more than likely resulted. My beta, Waffled Flambe has been busy with homework and has not had the time to run over it for me, and this chapter has been burning a hole in my...file folder? I did, however, run over this twice to try to wipe out anything that was blatantly noticeable. Once I get her to run over it, I'll replace this chapter with a beta-ed version so that it is easier to read.**

**Not much to comment on with this chapter. I think it pretty much explains itself. I have a lot of fun writing Toph/Aang dialogue though, which I what I was most afraid of going into this since I wasn't sure how good I was at blatant fluff. And now that I've got a feel for it, definitely expect much more in upcoming chapters.**

**The big question I seem to get right now, is "How is Toph alive?" That question may change after reading the end of this chapter, but I can assure you, it WILL be explained. I can only give you one hint and that is that it is something that feels like it should be more important in the actual show, but was used more like a glorified plot device for the only episode it was in. (And no, it is not the White Lotus.)**

**Also...since I am so generous, yet even more irritating at the same time...I can tell you that when you do find out how she is alive, it will have dropped significantly in importance to the story. I'm not saying when this will be, or what chapter it will be in, but if I can describe the future of this story in a few words, it would be: "I have plans."**

**RR&E (Read, Review, and Enjoy!)**


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

A week passed and everyday Sokka had volunteered to drive everyone to the mall.

"Doesn't this drain your gas?" asked Katara.

"Nah, I don't have to pay for gas as long as I do the grocery shopping, the laundry, and keep my room clean."

Aang tuned the conversation out as he left their usual table at Chick-fil-A to go look for Toph. Unfortunately, she didn't show up again today and he cursed himself for not getting any other information about her other than her name.

"I didn't even get an email," he shrugged as once again, he trudged over to the empty bench.

As he plopped down he put his head in his hands and sighed. "Dang it," was all he could say.

He looked up at the fountain that was in front of the bench in the middle of the mall.

He started at the top and watched the water work its way down into the bottom pool and finally settle and wait for the pumps to send it back to the top again. But he noticed something strange at the base of the fountain.

There were also seats along the edge of the fountain where you could sit and look at all the coins people wasted on wishes that they knew wouldn't come true. So much wasted money on something so intangible as a wish. In the past, Aang could only wonder why people would throw away money like that. But today, it wasn't the sillyness of wasted money that interested him about the fountain. Under one of the attached benches he saw something white fluttering with the vibrations of the fountain against the wall which contained it.

He looked around making sure that it wasn't anyone else's, but he knew that it was impossible to see it except from this very bench where Aang found Toph that first day. Aang slowly stood up and meandered over to the fountain and sat down on the bench and reached under the seat and grabbed what he realized was a piece of paper taped to the bottom.

Hopelessly optimistic, Aang unfolded it and read the typed print:

Aang. Parents found out. I still want to be friends even if we can't meet each other in person anymore. Phone: 843-387-0934 and my AIM is sheltrdlite. I have AIM so you can add me so we can talk there too. Toph

Aang leaped into the air and pumped his fist. Then he ran back to the table and spilled the letter onto the table and told everyone to add her to their AIM as well. The rest of the afternoon was spent in anticipation of talking with his new friend in the coming hours of night.

* * *

Aang didn't know why, but a sudden wave of nervousness had fallen over him as he sat on his bed with his cell phone in hand. He had the numbers typed in and his thumb was lingering over the send key, but for some reason he was delaying it and making sure that he knew what he wanted to say when she answered.

He didn't really know why he was hesitating. He thought about her parents. What if they discovered that she was talking to someone who knew who she really was?

'Nah,' he thought, 'she would just lie and say that it was one of the guards' children.'

What if she really was pitying him?

'Wait, what am I thinking? We're not actually going out.' His thought voice got softer. 'We were just playing a trick to fool Sokka.'

He pressed 'send.'

Each ring made his heart pound more and more.

"Why isn't she answering?" he accidentaly mumbled out loud, then scanned the room to make sure no one heard him.

"Hello?" he heard.

"Toph!"

Toph became excited too.

"Aang! You got the note!"

"I know! How did your parents find out?"

"My mom caught me walking back to the bench and asked me where I had been. I can detect lying, but I'm not a very good liar myself."

"You can tell if someone is lying?"

"Yep. Their heartbeat speeds up and their body just goes out of whack."

"Wow."

"Eh, you get over it eventually."

"So, what do you do for fun at home?"

"Not much. Watching TV is out of the question, and I'm not so great at sports. So I normally just sit in my room and listen to music or do something on the computer, like talk."

"Yeah, how do you use the computer anyway?"

"I have a program that tells me what a person types back, and I'm a great typer too."

"That's cool."

"Eh, my parents can get me pretty much anything I need to function."

"So all you do all day is just listen to music?"

"Pretty much."

Aang was struck with an idea.

"You know, Sokka was joking when he suggested you sneak out, but seriously...what floor are you on?"

"First. Me plus stairs does not equal a pretty expression on my parents' faces, even though I don't have any trouble with them."

"Want to go do something later tonight then? Kana sleeps like a rock and I can slip in and out of the house no problem. I know somewhere you've probably never been that you would love."

"Hmmm, well, my parents are on the second floor, and my window opens to the backyard..."

"GREAT!" he shouted, making Toph almost drop her phone. "Now, where's a good place to hop the fence?"

"I don't know. In the back I guess. There isn't really a fence there anymore, you could just walk around and come right into the courtyard."

"OK, cool. What time?"

"Psh, my parents always say that stupid "early bird" thing. I never understood why anyone would want to eat worms."

They bothed laughed, enjoying each other's voice just as much as the other.

"11 would be perfect."

"Ok, Kana is really old, so I'm sure she'll be asleep and I can get out by then."

"Ok, see you in a bit," she said.

"Ummm, ok..." Aang didn't want to hang up, "...by-"

BEEP

Aang sighed. She had already hung up.

* * *

**A/N: Short one. Not much more to say about it. Again, expect a few errors because my beta is still not able to run through them and I had the time to go ahead and write this one today. Same story as last time, I will replace this chapter with the real version once she betas it and gets it sent back to me.**

**RR&E (Read, Review, and Enjoy!)**


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Aang sighed as the Bei Fong estate finally came into sight. It was a ten minute walk and he was not about to let Sokka in on his little plan by letting him drive Aang there. It would only convince him all the more that they were actually dating.

The closer he got, the more nervousness he began to feel again. It was the same feeling that made him stall when he was trying to call her a few hours earlier, and he still couldn't grasp what about this girl was making him so nervous. He had only talked to her twice now but for some reason he felt as though he already knew so much about her. He tried again to reason out why he felt jumpy walking up to the house.

'She said her parents go to bed early. Plus, they live a story or two above the ground, so the only chance that they would have of catching me was if the guards caught me. No, that won't happen either. Toph said most were on vacation and the others were probably either asleep or guarding the front gate, which I'm not even going near anyway. So why do I still have this feeling about talking to her again?'

Aang stopped as he heard a rustle in the bushes next to him. He peered over to see if he could find out what it was, when all of a sudden, something jumped out at him.

Already scared to death of the house for whatever unknown reason, Aang turned and tried to run as fast as he could when he felt something holding him back. He turned his head while keeping his legs moving and saw that it was Toph, holding onto his hand. He let his legs stop working and turned the rest of his body around to see her. He relaxed as he let the familiar warmness of her hand calm him down from his fright.

"What are you doing out here?" he asked.

"I figured that it would be harder for both of us to sneak out of the yard, so I just went by myself so that we didn't attract any attention."

"Oh. Smart move."

They both paused in their speech when they realized that Toph still had her hand in Aang's. For ten seconds they both stood there staring at their hands when finally Toph let go with a nervous chuckle.

"Heh, I guess I didn't want you to make any noise," her voice choked with embarassment.

"Yeah, yeah," Aang quickly added, "Of course. I know that."

They stood in silence for a few moments both looking at the ground now rather than each other.

"So," Toph finally broke the stillness, "Where are we going?"

Aang lit up remembering the whole reason he had come.

"Oh yeah. Let's go."

* * *

"Here we are," Aang said.

"Ummm, Aang. There's nothing here. It's just a bunch of grass, and there's only one tree."

"No, no. This is a park."

"Oh, well, it must be very beautiful to look at."

"That's why I brought you here at night. It isn't much of a sight during the night so there won't be anything to distract us."

"Distract us from what?"

Aang mentally faceplamed. What were they going to do? He knew the park would be the perfect place, but he couldn't remember what in the world there was about it that made him choose this spot.

"Ummm, I don't know. Talking, I...guess..."

"Talk. You brought me out here to talk? If you wanted to talk we could have just talked over the phone. It's not like I can see you any better face-to-face than I can over the phone."

"But I can see you."

Aang blushed. 'Why in the world did I say that?'

Toph blushed. 'Why in the world did he say that?'

"Ummm, ok. Let's go sit under the tree then and, ummm, talk," Toph finally suggested.

They both found a comfortable spot under the tree and let themselves relax after the walk there. It was interesting because the grass had already been worn down in the places that Toph and Aang had chosen.

"That's strange. I guess a lot of people like to talk here," Toph said.

"That, or maybe the same two people talk here all the time."

"Possibly."

The small talk wasn't getting him anywhere Aang decided. He wasn't sure he was trying to get anywhere, but he knew that wherever he was trying to go, it had to be better than the awkward pauses and embarassing remarks that they had been making all evening.

"So, does everyone still think we're dating?" Toph asked.

"I haven't told them otherwise."

"Why not?"

Aang was at a loss. Why hadn't he "broken it off?" He didn't have any good reason to keep it going since they hadn't even been talking. Why had he neglected this part of the deal that they had made? He knew it wasn't because he had forgotten. Toph was one of the only things on his mind the entire week and he had run over every scenario in his mind on how to tell everyone that it was over, but for whatever reason he hadn't done it.

"Well? You've had all week. I thought you said this was only going to last a few days."

"Yeah, but, I guess I never thought it would be so fun to pretend date someone. Wait, not fun, I mean..."

"Shhhhh," Toph hushed with a finger to his lips, "I know what you're trying to say."

"Do you want me to tell them that it's over?"

'No.' Toph said mentally. 'I think this is, um, "fun" too. Plus, it's basically the only thing keeping me in contact with you.'

"I don't know," she audiated, "I mean, you don't have to if you don't want to..."

"It's up to you Toph. You're the one that got suckered into this, you make the call on when we stop it."

'Really? I have control over it? He doesn't care how long I date...uh...pretend date him?'

"We don't have to do it right now do we?" she asked.

"Do?" Aang asked.

Toph's cheeks turned a fiery red.

"No! No, not "do"...You know what I meant!"

"I know, I know," reassured Aang, "I was just joking. I thought it would be funny since we are dat...pretend dating."

"Well, you know what else is funny?" Toph asked, her embarassed smile changing to a smirk.

"What?" Aang dared.

Toph socked him in the arm.

"Hey!" he shouted.

"What? You too much of a wussy to do anything about it? Or are you just afraid of hitting your GIRLFRIEND!!"

Aang retaliated with a playful shove away from him.

"Oh, you've done it now Twinkle Toes," Toph challenged as she used all her force against him causing both of them to roll down the hill on which the tree was set.

They tumbled and rolled further and further down the hill, laughing and giggling and holding onto each other all the way down.

When they finally stopped, Aang remained motionless not because of shortness of breath, but because of the mass that lay on top of him. They both laughed and laughed until they finally settled down.

When the laughter did subside, Toph took notice of what she was doing. She still had her arms wrapped around Aang's back, and she was laying down on top of him. She could tell by the distinctly quickening heartbeat and rise in body temperature that he was realizing the same thing. But for some reason, she could not bring herself to get off. He was slightly larger than she was and he had a wider chest making him very comfortable to lay on.

Aang furtively tried to move his head and look around the park to make sure no one was watching, but it was useless. Toph had him pinned and he wasn't going anywhere. He decided to give up and open his eyes to her face. Her hair had come loose from its bun and was flowing all down her back and some even lay on his waist. He took distinct note of her eyes once more and saw how deep and faded they really were, even in the moonlight.

All of a sudden, Toph became aware of the situation. She slowly let herself get up and scoot away from Aang.

"What are you doing?" asked Aang.

"I didn't want to crush you."

"I didn't mind."

For the next couple of minutes, they let their gazes fix on each other. Even though she couldn't see him, Toph still acknowledged Aang by turning her face towards him while still concentrating on vibrations. For a few moments, time stood still in the park.

* * *

Aang looked at his watch as the two journeyed back to Toph's estate.

"Hey, we made pretty good time. It's still only four in the morning," he said.

"Yeah. We'll do this again sometime right?"

"How about tomorrow?"

Toph was shocked. Even after all the awkwardness and wrestling and long gazes into each other's eyes, he still wanted to come back and do it all again?

"We may do something else, but I don't get to see you during the day obviously. I really liked spending time with you tonight."

Toph didn't reply.

As the mansion became visible, the two realized the need to part before the guards came into view.

"So, ummm, goodbye?" Aang hesitated.

"Yeah. Don't worry, I'll call you and tell you when you can come tomorrow night."

"OK, see you later."

And with that, Toph turned into the woods and began her walk to the backyard and back into her room.

Looking over his shoulder one last time, Aang sighed as the Bei Fong estate finally disappeared from sight.

* * *

**A/N: Double post, full A/N in Chapter 5.**


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

The next two weeks flew by. Almost every night, Aang had gone and either taken Toph somewhere exciting, fun, or just somewhere she had never been before. Better yet, they had loved every minute of it. The two were bonding more and more and when they weren't together at night, no one could get a word in with Aang while he was texting her (assuming he or she wasn't asleep). And of course, they had no plans to stop tonight.

Because it was a Saturday night, Kana had let Aang go ahead anyway without sneaking out, and Toph's parents had left that afternoon, making her escape easier and earlier for Toph that night. The planning conversation over the phone sounded something like this:

"Hey, where are you taking me tonight my masked stranger?"

"Hey, I asked you not to make fun of me for that night."

"Sorry."

"Ummm, you said you can go early tonight right?"

"Yeah."

"How about a movie?"

"Movie? Aang, there's no way the guards will let you in the house."

"No, I mean go to a theater."

"..."

"A movie theater?"

"..."

"Yeah, we are definitely going to a movie tonight. You'll love it."

"Whatever. You've hit a winner every night so far."

"Thanks."

"What time then, oh mystery ma-...I mean...you?"

"Funny. Ummm, 10?"

"Fine."

"Cool, see you then."

And with that they hung up.

The rest of the night went just as Aang had planned it, that is, until they got to the theater.

"So, how do you watch a movie here?" Toph asked.

"Oh, it's easy. We go in, take a seat in a big room, and there's a giant screen, an-"

Aang's face turned as red as Zuko's scar as soon as he realized that he would be the only one who could enjoy the movie.

"I'm sooooo sorry Toph! I didn't...I forgo-...I'M SOOOOOO SORRY!!"

Toph finally let the laughter escape her lips.

Aang slowed his apologies to a stop. "You're not mad at me?"

"Seriously? Why in the world would I be mad at you?! It's hilarious!!"

"I didn't think so," Aang mumbled.

"Aang, don't take it too seriously. I knew you had forgotten and I'm fine with that. Frankly, I'm just glad I'm with you right now."

They both caught what she said at the same instant and their matching shades of red proved it.

"Yeah, speaking of that, the longer we pull this stuff without telling Sokka and Katara and them, the more difficult it is going to be to convince them that we aren't dating. Especially if they find out all at once."

Toph hung her head. She knew this conversation was coming.

"Yeah, I guess so," she said, slumping down on the bench in the lobby.

"Wait, why are you so upset about it?" asked Aang, "After this, we'll be free to do whatever we want to do without having to worry about people finding out."

Toph didn't move.

"Frankly, I'm not sure why we waited so long anyway," he continued not noticing the shaking Toph on the bench, "Believe me, I can show you a lot of things that would be weird if we were still pretending to...Toph?" Aang finally noticed.

She only looked up at him with her red and glistening eyes, got up, and ran out the door of the theater.

Aang took her place on the bench. "What the heck?" he asked himself, even though he knew exactly what was wrong.

"Aang!"

Aang jumped and turned to look for the voice that called. He was relieved to see that he knew the person, Katara, that was calling him. But his relief turned to disdain when she saw her hand interlinked in Zuko's.

"Aang! Was that Toph just now?" she asked, running toward the bench, dragging her beau behind her.

"It was," his shaky voice giving away what just happened.

Katara acted quickly. "Zuko, go get us some popcorn. I'll meet you in the theater."

"OK," he said, giving a nod of understanding, and then turning to the concession stand.

"OK Aang, what happened?"

"I...I think we just broke up," Aang said, not sure how to disguise what really had happened.

Katara didn't know what to say, and even if she did, she wasn't sure if she would be the right one to say it knowing Aang's history with herself.

"Well," she started...

"It was going so well too!" he interrupted, "We've been hanging out so much, and...I guess I blew it."

Struck with inspiration, Katara knew what to do.

"Yeah, well, looks like you did blow it. Plus, she's a rich heiress, so good luck winning her back."

Aang turned to her with a puzzled look on his face, slightly annoyed by the sing-song voice Katara was using.

"Probably didn't take much either. Those rich girls, they take a lot of loving. Say one wrong thing and BOOM! They're gone. I wouldn't worry about her. You won't be seeing her again."

Aang couldn't believe it. His annoyance was changing to frustration and he was on the path to anger.

"She was way out of your league anyway. You haven't even had a girlfriend before!" she chuckled.

Sinker.

"How can you say that?!" exclaimed Aang, "That's the most heartless thing I've ever heard about a person, not to mention it was from you! Don't you dare say anything like that about her ever again! You think I'm alone?! She's never even had a real friend before!! And you go off insulting her and me and our relationship..." Aang stopped. What was he saying? Relationship? 'I thought it was fake...' Aang thought as he turned to a smiling Katara.

"Go get her," her lips spoke so sweetly and simply. Aang remembered in that moment why he was hung up on her for so long. And now, she just gave him the perfect reason to get over her even more quickly than he had been.

"Thanks Katara," he smiled, bringing the girl up in an embrace.

"No problem. Now hurry! You won't catch her if you wait until she gets home!"

* * *

Aang ran to the place where he knew he would find her. The park was their place at night, and knowing that she wouldn't give up on him just like that, he figured that was the optimal place after their several nights there. And surely enough, he entered the park and saw their tree, lonely except for the company of the small figure with her head in her hands.

"Toph!" Aang cried out and began running up the hill to her.

"Toph! I'm sorry! I didn't mean it!"

"Is that right Twinkle Toes? You didn't mean that this whole thing was fake. Spending every night together? Going to the park? Walking in the woods? Texting during the day? You mean you did feel something? Good, I thought it was just me."

The words had bitten right through the boy.

"Toph, I know. I know how you feel."

"No you don't! You can't possibly know how I feel! Betrayed, left to dry, USED?!"

Aang got down on his knees and simply said, "Yes, I do."

Toph looked up, her eyes red even in the pale moonlight.

"You do?" she said between sniffs.

Aang nodded.

"But more importantly, I know exactly what you need right now."

"What is that?" she quivered.

The town bell rang twelve as their lips met under the shade of the tree.

Aang leaned out of the kiss, unsure of how Toph would feel about it, but he was soon met again by the moist and warm feeling of her lips against his own. He leaned all the way back to the tree for support until he lay on the ground with Toph beside him. They allowed the contact to continue until they somehow mutually decided that it was time to break.

"Want to go somewhere?" he asked more softly than the wind that blew through the leaves above them.

"Sure," she answered just as quietly.

Aang grasped her hand, having a new appreciation for its petite warmness, and began down the hill.

"Aang! Look-" was all Aang heard before the tree root ruined his footing and brought him to the ground, unconscious.

* * *

Aang woke up to a place that he couldn't decifer. He knew it was still midnight, but he was still able to make out his surroundings because of some surreal glow that had enveloped the atmosphere.

He stood. Looking down, he noticed grass similar to that which was below the tree in the park. Looking forward though, he gazed on an endless expanse of trees the exact same size and shape as the tree too.

He began to walk forward seeing a light coming from directly in front of him, hoping that it was the end of this forest he somehow had found himself in.

Suddenly, the light disappeared. Looking around, Aang found the same light, but a little bit closer, and a little bit to his left. He broke into a run toward it when it too vanished.

Expectantly, Aang turned behind him to find that the light had indeed moved closer and was directly behind him this time.

One last time, Aang advanced on it, but the light went away once more without returning.

Aand twirled around and around trying to figure out what was going on when all of a sudden, a greater light flashed before him. The light was so intense that Aang had to shield his eyes and wait for it to dim.

Finally, when the light dimmed, Aang saw a great monster before him. It was a black and white thing, with four arms and a pair of hind legs to run with, but before he could examine it further, it slowly began shape-shifting with the accompaniment of another blinding light.

Any other time, Aang would have been screaming and running away from such a thing, but for some reason, Aang was somewhat entranced by what was happening.

When the light went away again, Aang found a much more familiar shape. The monster had retained its black and white colors, but it was in the much more inviting shape of a panda bear.

Aang began to step closer to it, sensing that there was nothing to be afraid of. But then he was stopped short by one more blinding light.

After this flash, Aang rubbed his eyes and looked to see no longer a creature, but a man. He had on a black shirt and white pants. He also had white make-up on and jet black hair to complete his look.

Aang felt no fear. "Umm, hi?"

"Hello Aang."

Aang didn't expect the thing to know him.

"Who are you?"

"I am Hei-Bai, the black and white spirit. I am also the spirit of this forest, or, in the real world, the park where you came from."

"Where am I?"

"The spirit world."

"Why am I here?" Aang asked, surprised at how lightly he was taking this spirit world stuff.

"I have something for you. But I must be urgent. I have no further time for questions. They may find me here."

"Who?"

"I have no further time for questions."

The man held out his hand. In it, was a smaller, greener light. He opened his palm and Aang realized it was an acorn.

"An acorn?" Aang asked.

The spirit nodded its head with great dignity.

"Then what is it?"

As the man advanced toward Aang, Aang held out his hand ready to accept his offering, whatever it was.

As the man closed the gap between Aang and himself, he leaned into Aang's ear and whispered one word, while simultaneously closing Aang's hand around the acorn-shaped light.

"Memory."

Aang felt a jolt, and then nothing.

* * *

**A/N: Don't ask me why, but when I finished this chapter, I was shaking. Maybe it was just the summer weather, or the rain, or the cold of the room, or everything in general, but for some reason my body went out of whack when I wrote this one.  
**

**This chapter was posted at the same time as Chapter 4, for some reason that I'm not entirely sure of. I apologize once more for not having fully corrected versions of these or the last two chapters, but I haven't been smacking enough motivation into my beta reader, so I'm going to have to do that next time she gets online. I promise though, I'll try to not post anymore chapters without them being beta-ed. But Chapter 4 was burning a hole in my pocket because of all the fluff, and then I just wrote this chapter and...wow...yeah. I thought that this chapter definitely needed to go up as soon as possible, otherwise it might burn right through my fanfic folder because of my impatience with written, but unposted chapters. Oh well.**

**RR&E**


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Aang slowly opened his eyes to a grayish blur that he recognized (after several times in this same position) to be a hospital room.

"Aang! You're awake…again!" shouted Katara.

"Ugh, how long was I out this time?" he asked.

"Just a few hours. It's eight in the morning now," Aang shot up at the familiar voice. Could it be?

"Hey, Twinkle Toes."

"But, but you...and, I...we...we..."

Aang's head began to hurt. He put his hand to his forehead and pressed as if he were trying to hold something in. One by one, things began trickling back into his mind.

'Roku...he...he took away my memory of Toph, of the spirit world...but...how is Toph alive?...she...moved on...but last night...we...' Aang stopped his thoughts, gathered them together and started over from the beginning.

'OK Aang, let's figure this out from the beginning. Roku took my powers away, and my memory of Toph. But then he said I would get my powers back in a month, but that was a month ago!' He counted in his head how long it had been since his first day back at school. 'A month is tonight! Now, what about Toph? She moved on. Roku made her move on. But then, I didn't have any memory, and I met her in the mall. She met everyone else. We went out at night and did things. Then I made her mad, and then I kissed her.'

Aang had to stop again. 'I kissed Toph,' he repeated.

"Aang, you okay?" asked Katara.

He glanced around to see who else was there. He saw Sokka sitting in a chair next to Toph, and Kana was standing next to Katara.

"What happened to me?"

"You tripped on a tree root," Katara said, "If you hadn't been with Toph we would have never found you."

Aang jerked with the sudden memory of what had happened.

'I fell. I fell back into the spirit world, but it wasn't Roku that brought me there. It wasn't time yet. I got there somehow, by myself. And then, the light. Hei Bai, the black and white spirit, he gave me my memory back. And then I woke up here.'

"So, Toph called you guys, and then you brought me here?"

"Yeah."

Now that Aang had sorted everything out, he began to lose it again. He looked back at Toph with her friendly smile giving him her full attention. Finally, Aang slumped back down and blacked again.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The rest of the day was spent with Aang periodically waking up and asking the same questions and then the same black out occuring every time he saw Toph's face. Finally, everyone decided it would be best to let him rest for the rest of the day and come back tomorrow.

Eventually, Aang woke up again at about eight in the evening when the nurse woke him for some quick medical tests they needed to run and then left him alone again to rest. Aang laid back down and shut his eyes, drifting off to sleep once more...

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Aang."

Aang shot up. He recognized the pillars and other common features of Roku's temple.

With a hint of annoyance and contempt in his voice, Aang grunted, "Roku."

"Aang, we need to talk."

Aang stood. "Well?! Start talking. Explain to me everything you know. Why is Toph alive? Why did you erase my memory? How did I get it back? What the heck is going on here?!"

Roku sighed. "OK, I will tell you everything."

"When I died, I took the place of my mentor, Kyoshi, as you will take my place some day. My first task given to me was you Aang. I followed you all the way from birth and when the time was right, as you remember, I appeared to you and gave you your spiritual sight.

"But, things happened during your birth that no one has told you about for good reason. However, you are old enough now, and it is time for you to learn.

"Not all spirits in the spirit world want what people like me, Kyoshi, and you want. I'm sure you've figured this out by now just by knowing about human nature. There will always be a few bad eggs. Centuries ago, an evil spirit named Sozin came to the spirit world and wreaked havoc on all of us. Kyoshi is the only one still alive that remembers these times. All the forces for the good of the spirit world were able to band together and repress Sozin and eventually, expel him from our world forever. But there is a problem. Sozin has been reborn. He now calls himself Ozai, but he has only appeared a few times. He is much more swift, precise, and deadly than Sozin was though. The most recent sighting of him was at your birth, when he tried to attack you. Kyoshi and myself were able to defend you until you were born at which time Ozai had no choice but to flee and wait for an appropriate time."

"So what does this have to do with my memories?"

"Ozai is very powerful. He has incredible control and can do nearly anything he wants on a whim. He has created a spawn, named Azula. He knew that the only way to get to you directly was to attack you from the mortal world, which, as a spirit, he could not do."

"So he sent Azula after me through someone else's body."

"Yes."

There was silence. "Well?! Who is it?!"

"It's Toph."

Aang felt his heart melt.

"Toph?! But, but how?!"

"The night that Toph moved on, it was not I that had snatched your body, it was Ozai. The circle that surrounded Toph was not an incantation to make Toph move on, it was an incantation for Azula to take the place of Toph's spirit. By the time you had arrived, it was too late. As soon as Ozai had done what he needed to do, he fled your body allowing me to take control again."

"So, where is Toph's spirit?"

"In her former life. Azula blocked her out of her next body, so her spirit had nowhere else to go, but back to Toph's original body."

"OK, I think I understand. You had nothing to do with what happened that night, but it was too dangerous for me to find out about Ozai, so you erased my memory of Toph not to punish me, but to take away any chance of me finding out about Ozai."

"Correct."

Aang ran over it all in his head one more time, just to make sure he caught everything, when he realized that the one question he really wanted to know had not been answered yet.

"One more question, how is Toph alive?"

"Aang, what is the one thing I have always reminded you of during your training? What is the one thing I told you always to remember?"

"Time is an illusion, and so is death."

"Well?"

"I still don't get it."

"Aang, think about it. Time is an illusion and so is death. If time is an illusion, then how did you know when it was that Toph had lived?"

"Ummm, I don't know. I just kind of figured that as soon as she died, she went to the spirit world in the same place as she had died."

"Wrong Aang. Time is an illusion. Spirits see past illusions and that means that there is no knowing where they'll end up."

"Wait, so Toph was actually alive at the same time I was? This hasn't all been just a dream?"

Roku nodded.

Aang tried wrapping his mind around the reality of all that was happening. His best fr...girlfriend was alive. He would get to see her again! He would get to talk to her again!

"Aang, I am not finished. You have a new task ahead of you. Ozai is preparing. Azula stands armed and ready for combat. We have a lot of serious training to start before the solstice."

"The solstice?"

"Aang, at the winter solstice, the spirit world and mortal world touch. The line between them becomes blurred, and there will be no stopping Ozai from entering the mortal world. You must be ready to stop him at all costs. All your other duties as the Avatar are suspended. Your new priority is to prepare for battle with Ozai. Now, however, you must rest your physical body."

The ground beneath Aang swirled and changed and eventually disappeared causing Aang to fall. Aang fell and fell and just when he felt like he would hit the bottom of whatever it is he was approaching, he woke back up in his hospital room, shaking.

He looked around. It was morning, but no one had arrived yet.

Aang sat up and thought about everything that was happening. He only really had one worry, and that was being taken care of by Roku. As long as he got his training done like Roku said he would, everything would be fine. Plus, Toph was back.

'Toph' he thought. He couldn't wait to see her again. He thought about her for a long time. He thought about all the fun they had been having, and all the talks they used to have under the same tree in the park when she was a spirit. But now he knew! He knew about her in real life, and he could talk to her and hang out with her as much as he wanted until...

Aang froze, too scared to complete the thought that he knew he would have to eventually. How could he have been so stupid? How could he have forgotten the entire reason for all of this stuff anyway?

How could he forget that Toph was going to die?!

* * *

**A/N: Interesting chapter this time. This one came out a little earlier than I had planned it too, but whenever I get bored, this is what I do, and I've been bored a lot so far...XDDDD.  
**

**Not much else to say on this one.**

**RR&E**


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

"Really Kana, I promise, I'm fine."

Aang was flattered at the attention, but what he really needed was some alone time in his room to relax and get his mind off of everything that was happening.

"OK Aang, just ring the bell if you need anything."

"I will," Aang said as he motioned his chuckling guardian out the door.

Aang grabbed his remote and clicked on the TV. He couldn't really decide anything to watch so he just kept flipping until something interesting came on. He had finally settled on Wheel of Fortune when suddenly Katara burst through the door.

"Aang! I need your help!"

Aang rolled his eyes.

"What do you need Katara?"

"Well I have a date with Zuko tonight, and I wanted to know which skirt you like best: the blue floor-length or the white mini?"

Cringing at the thought of Zuko sneaking a peek, Aang quickly said, "The blue one! Now can you please leave? I'm really tired."

"Oh, sorry Aang, forgot about...everything."

Aang sighed, "That's fine. I'm glad you're concerned. But please, be concerned somewhere else."

And with that, Aang reached behind him and shut the door. He realized that he was not being very nice to Katara, but he was too tired to care about it right now. He would apologize later he decided.

Wheel of Fortune was going off so Aang went back to channel flipping.

"News? No. Survivor? No...Hmmm...I guess I'll just watch The Office."

Aang finally settled and got comfortable when his cell phone began to ring.

With what would have looked like a heroic effort to anyone watching, Aang threw his covers off and trudged over to his desk to grab his phone. He looked at the caller ID and groaned.

"Sokka, what do you want? I'm trying to rest."

"Oh, sorry, my bad. I just needed to ask you something."

"..."

"..."

"WELL?! WHAT IS IT!?"

"Oh, sorry. Well, see, here's the thing. Today is Suki's birthday, and I had a dinner planned at Chili's tonight, but they're packed. Where else could I take her that is romantic?"

"I don't know Sokka, just take her somewhere that you like."

"Hello? Aang? Suki's a vegetarian. There aren't very many vegetarian options at Texas Roadhouse and since it's her birthday, I'm taking a meat-fast too."

"Wow," Aang deadpanned rolling his eyes, "Commitment."

"Ha. Now, seriously, where can we go?"

"I don't know Sokka! What is her favorite restaurant?"

"Chili's."

Aang hung up.

* * *

Finally, Aang had gotten through a half-hour of pleasant television without interruptions from anyone else. Aang chewed on his food enjoyably.

At last, he was relaxing.

Out of nowhere, he heard an abrupt tap. He looked around the room trying to find what had fallen or been knocked over or whatever, but everything looked the same. He shrugged it off and settled back down into his bed, when he heard it again.

"What is that?" he said. He went through his routine of scanning his room from his closet to his bookshelve, but nothing had fallen since the last time he heard it. But before he had a chance to scoot back under the covers, it came again, much louder. He looked around once more quickly only to finally see something waving in front of the window.

"Great!" he exclaimed, "What is it THIS time?!"

He threw away his covers and stomped over to the window, opening it and looking down.

He almost fell out when he saw Toph dangling from the gutter that was beside his window.

"Toph?! What are you doing there?"

"Trying to get your attention Twinkle Toes! But now that I have it, I think I'm perfectly fine just using all of my strength to hold me here at this second story window. Don't bother helping me inside or anything."

Aang quickly reached out his hand for Toph to grasp, tingling inside knowing that it meant more now every time they held hands or touched.

"So, you're parents are still out on business?"

"Yeah, their vaca-...I mean meetings are taking longer than they thought."

Aang chuckled at the girl's humor.

"So what are you doing right now?" she inquired.

"Ugh, trying to watch The Office, but SOME PEOPLE...keep interrupting me."

Toph gave him a blank stare.

"Fine then, I'll go back home."

"No! Wait, Toph! I was kidding!"

Suddenly, Toph sprang back from the window and landed on top of Aang.

"I know, but I wanted an excuse to do that."

Aang rolled his eyes, then realized that it wouldn't do any good.

"So, you want to watch...I mean, umm...listen to The Office with me?"

"Sure," said Toph, without any acknowledgement of his constant slip-ups with remembering that she was blind.

Aang hopped on the bed, and Toph crawled in next to him. She knew it wouldn't do her any good to face the TV, so she laid her head on his chest and arbitrarily faced whatever direction was convenient while listening the best she could to the show.

They stayed in these positions for two hours. Aang would sometimes let Toph know what was happening when the awkward silences took over the program. He was beginning to realize more and more that The Office was not much of a listening program. But strangely enough, Toph didn't seem to mind. Aang asked her after each episode whether she wanted to listen to something else or not, but each time she answered that she didn't want to change anything because she would have to get comfortable on his chest again after he sat back down.

Eventually, Aang finally said, "Alright Toph, this is the last episode of the season, Casino Night. You sure you want to watch this one?" Aang asked. He had seen it before and knew that it was kind of emotionally traumatizing the first time.

"Sure, this show is pretty funny."

Aang sighed, "OK then."

Aang clicked play.

* * *

Toph for some reason was becoming more and more engrossed in the episode as it went on.

Aang knew what was coming up though.

_Uh...hey, can I talk to you about something?_

_About when you wanna give me more of your money?..We can go inside. I'm feeling kinda good tonight._

_I was just, um...I'm in love with you._

Aang peeked over at Toph, whose eyes were swelling up. They had watched several episodes already and Toph had already keyed in on the Roy, Jim, and Pam conflict.

"Wha-...what's happening?" Toph choked out.

"Pam doesn't feel the same way," Aang asked trying to stem a reaction from her.

"She does too! Have you been watching the show?!"

"Yeah, but she has the commitment to Roy," dragging Toph a little further into it.

"That shouldn't matter! Jim just put it all on the line for her, and now she's rejecting him?! How can she do that to him?"

"Shhhh...watch Toph."

_About ten minutes ago...No, I didn't know what to say...Yes, I know...Um, I don't know, Mom. He's my best friend...Yeah, he's great...Yeah, I think I am..Um, I have to go...I will..._

"Aang, what's happening?"

"Jim walked in. They're in the dark office alone."

_Listen, Jim--_

Toph was weeping at this point. "Aang, wha-...what is happen-..." her lips were cut off by his.

She rolled him over and reached around his neck to bring him closer. The kiss was at least twice as sweet as their first and easily three times as long. Aang rolled Toph back to her side and finally broke contact. Wiping away her tears, he whispered, "That's what happened."

She brought him closer again and there they remained as time drifted away.

* * *

**A/N: dodges spazzing Taangers**

**Yeah, there was no plot to this chapter, but I decided that before I set the rest of the plot in motion, we needed some more Taang fluff. Because really...EVERY story needs a considerable amount of Taang fluff. Even Zutara fics.  
**

**The last bit was indeed from the episode "Casino Night" from The Office. Aside from Avatar, The Office is my favorite TV show ever and I hope that the lot of you are watching the show too. It's ahmayzing. To give a little background on what's happening in the episode, Pam is engaged to Roy, but Jim loves Pam, and it's obvious that Pam likes Jim. In this episode, Jim put it all on the line for Pam who unfortunately turned him down. But then, the show cuts to Pam alone in the dark office talking on the phone to her mother. Jim walks in and she tells her mom that she has to go. Then as he approaches her, she starts to say something, but he interrupts her with a kiss, much like what happened with the other cutest couple ever. (In case you can't tell, I ship Jam as well.) And with that kiss, the season ends and everyone is put on hold until Season 3 when we find out that...nah, I'll let you just watch the show.**

**Other than that, not much to say. Again, I'm sorry for any uncaught errors, and I'm going to try my hardest now to not post any unbeta-ed chapters from here on in because there is not stopping the plot at this point, and I don't want you guys to be distracted by silly little grammar mistakes.**

**RR&E**


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

"Awww, look at them."

"I know, they're so cute."

Aang and Toph both fluttered their eyes and turned over to see who was spying on them.

"Hey, what are you two doing? Eh? Ehhh?" pestered Suki.

"Aw, leave them alone Suki. It's not like you and Sokka were any different when you were younger."

"Psh, you and Zuko aren't any different now," chuckled Suki.

"Hey! Can you two discuss this somewhere else?!" shouted Aang.

Katara and Suki looked down at Aang's hand placed unintentionally on Toph's backside, turned to each other, and broke out in hilarious laughter.

Toph finally rolled over, grabbed Aang's hand, brought it to her cheek and gave him the sappiest and most groping kiss she could.

She broke it off and shouted at the girls, "There! Is that what you came to see?!"

The door slammed shut and the two could hear the clomping of two pairs of footsteps bounding down five stairs at a time.

Aang turned and said, "You're funny."

Toph gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "You too," she whispered, completely rolling over until they faced each other.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

An alarm went off and Aang jumped, waking the girl nuzzled in his stomach.

"Oh, sorry Toph, didn't mean to wake you up."

"Eh, I was awake anyway. I just didn't want to wake you up."

"Oh, ok."

Toph sat up and ran her hands through her loosened hair. She then reached in her back pocket and grabbed her headband.

"Ugh," Aang moaned.

"Umm, excuse me? Can I help you?"

"Don't put your hair up."

"And why not?"

"Because, I don't want you to," Aang stated.

"Because you don't want me to? That's the best you've got? Not a 'because I like it down' or a 'leave it down, you look like an angel?'"

"Nope, I just wanted to see if you would do it just because I wanted you to."

"Well, here's your answer," Toph smirked as she continued the process or pulling her hair back.

Aang bellowed his most dramatic sigh possible.

"Hey, you asked for it. Anyone who can't get more creative than 'I want you to' deserves nothing less."

"Yeah, but what if there was another reason, but I couldn't tell you the reason?"

"Then I wouldn't believe you. Anything that important should not be a secret."

Aang stopped. The words cut through him. He knew that there was a reason, but it didn't apply this stupid hair thing. She was going to die, and he knew that there was going to be a time when he would have to ask her not to do something and rely on her trust. He didn't even know what it was going to be. It could be something as simple as not getting in the car with Sokka, or it could be something huge like...a break-up. He stopped the thought right there.

He pondered all of this in his head and decided to test himself.

"So," he started slowly, "you can't trust someone who doesn't tell you every single thing?"

"No, that's not it."

"What then?"

"I can't trust someone who WON'T tell me everything," she explained. "I can't trust someone who isn't willing to do something so simple as to tell the whole truth. I don't have to know every little detail, nor do I want to. But I do want to know that I can rely on that person to tell me exactly what I want to know if at all possible."

"What do you mean 'if at all possible'?" Aang wondered.

"I mean that there are probably some circumstances where the person wouldn't be able to tell me, like if they didn't know or something. I'm not going to hold it against someone if they simply don't know what it is I want them to tell me. But if they know what it is that I want to know, they better tell me. And I can tell if they know or not. Remember my lie-detecting skills? All it takes is a few questions and I can see just how far I can trust a person."

Aang looked down at his bedspread, a sense of melancholy washing over him. "What if it was something that would only hurt you if you knew?"

"How could that happen?" Toph questioned, furrowing her brows. "How could knowledge hurt someone?"

"Trust me, it is possible."

"I don't believe it. Why are you asking me all these questions? You...you don't have something to tell me do you?" Her eyes narrowed suspiciously.

'Crap,' Aang thought, 'I took it too far, now I have to get out of it.'

"No, I was just wondering. Trying to, you know, get into the psyche of my girlfriend."

Toph smirked. "So, you _are_ keeping a secret from me. Too late, Aang, now you have to tell me."

Aang's heart pounded. She couldn't realize the importance of it, of everything that was in his mind right now, of everything that would happen in the future. This was just a game to her. This was just flirting.

"I...I can't tell you."

"What?!" Toph shrieked in disbelief. "I just poured my heart out to you, and now you know how I feel. And you say exactly what I told you you weren't allowed to say? Now tell me, now!"

"I. Can't. Tell. You." Aang's eyes watered from the pressure of the situation.

"Not gonna work Aang. Tell me right now or I leave you right here on this bed, and we start our first fight until you tell me exactly what it is that you know."

"I CAN'T TELL YOU, OK?!"

Toph stopped prodding.

"Why can't you trust me just that much?" Aang asked quietly.

"Why can't YOU trust ME just that much?"

Aang was taken aback. She was right, but she was wrong. She didn't know anything about it and he knew that for her own protection, she couldn't find out.

"Because. Because, I can't."

"So that's still the best you can come up with?" she mocked. "I can't believe it. You're my first real friend. Even more so, my first boyfriend. And you've already started keeping secrets? Way to go Aang. You've given me such a great outlook on how the outside world works."

"Stop it, Toph. I need you to trust me on this. I cannot tell you."

"You know, you're awfully funny when you're serious."

"Don't start joking around now, Toph."

She had found out how to break him.

"Seriously though. It's so cute. You act all serious and think that your little secret is sooo important that you can't even tell me, your girlfriend. I just said it's kind of funny."

"Knock it off, Toph. Seriously."

Thunder cracked outside, but neither was paying attention.

"Oh, I found something even cuter than you being serious. Your acting mad is a lot funnier."

"I'm not acting," Aang growled through his teeth, his face turning red, mad that she was pushing him on this.

"Sure you aren't."

"I'm. Not." Aang punctuated.

"It sure sounds like it," Toph kept pushing.

"Toph, don't do this to me."

"Do what?" she kept teasing.

"Don't make me mad at you! I can't be mad at you right now!"

"Then tell me."

"No."

"Tell me."

"No."

"Tell me."

"FINE!! YOU'RE GONNA DIE!! HAPPY?!"

The rain began to fall in perfect harmony with the tears of the weeping boy as he laid his head in his hands and sobbed.

* * *

**A/N: cowers from outraged fans Sorry for the lack of post-age. I've got three more chapters lined up though that will be posted as soon as they get beta-ed.**

**Like this one!!...SEE?! Aren't beta-ed stories soooo much awesome-er?? Go waffledflambe!!**

**RR&E**


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

"You're going to have to forgive me for being skeptical."

"I understand," Aang sniffled. He had finally been able to speak again after his fit of weeping that lasted about ten minutes.

"Just...try to explain it. I'm going to try as hard as I can to believe you. Believe me, weirder stuff has probably happened. I'm blind, remember?"

"Yeah. I guess I never thought you'd take it like that."

"Yeah...sadly enough, I knew you were sincere when you said...that... It doesn't mean I believe you because people are sincere about many things that are totally false," she elaborated. "I know you wouldn't flat out lie to me about something like that, but you still have to convince me that you know what you're talking about."

"I understand."

The two hugged very tightly. Neither wanted it to end. Even in the midst of this traumatic moment, she still felt a sense of comfort and peace from hugging him. It was something she had never felt from anyone before, not even her parents the few times they had hugged her.

"OK," said Aang, "I think I'm ready.

"It all started one morning when I woke up in this weird place with these stone pillars and statues and stuff. I found out I was in the spirit world. My mentor, Roku, then explained to me that I was the Avatar, the person meant to usher spirits on to their next lives after they've died. For a few months, I was troubled with these new powers and stuff that came with the job, but eventually I got over it.

"But then, you came along," Aang said.

"What do you mean? How did I interfere with you that day at the mall?"

"No, you don't get it. I'm not talking about the mall. I'm talking about under the tree in the park. One day, I saw you there and saw that you were a spirit. You were stubborn though, and you wouldn't move on to your next life. You got mad at me several times because I wanted you to move on, but we eventually became friends. Really close friends in fact."

"As close as we are now?" Toph interrupted.

Aang blushed. "No, it was more like, how I'm close to Sokka."

"Oh," Toph said.

"Anyway, eventually, Roku got mad at me because you weren't moving on. He threatened that if I didn't get you to move on, then he would do it himself.

"Well, I still never got around to it, and one morning I woke up in the spirit world. I couldn't enter my body because I thought that Roku had taken it. Eventually though, I was able to find a way back into the real world. It looked like Roku was chanting something to make you move on against your will, so I ran up and stopped him. He was angrier than ever then, but before he could do anything, you stepped in and offered to go freely."

"And that was it?"

"Not quite. We said 'goodbye' and you moved on, but Kana and Katara were too worried to let me back into school because I had blacked out several times."

"Yeah, I notice you do that a lot."

Aang chuckled. He was so glad the weight of the conversation had been lifted. He was still upset about everything, but Toph was able to make him feel lighter, as if everything was going to be ok. She made him feel...good.

"Anyway," Aang continued, "A few weeks passed and I was ready to go back to school. But Roku came back and told me that as punishment for breaking the rules, I would lose my powers for a month, and I would lose my memory of you forever."

"I'm assuming you'll explain that later then?"

"Yes, I'll explain. Even though actually, you pretty much know the rest of the story. We met in the mall, and obviously, I didn't have any memory of you. But then, the night that we...umm...kiss-" Aang's lips were stopped by Toph's. Unfortunately, it was only brief.

"What was that for?" Aang asked, a faint blush coming on his face.

"You are being way too awkward about this whole kissing and loving and dating thing. I've never even had a friend before and I'm over it. Until you can get a grip on yourself, you can expect those at any random time of your choosing."

"And what about after I get over it?" Aang smirked.

"Eh, why not?" Toph said leaning into his lips once again for a few seconds.

* * *

"So are you convinced?"

"Unfortunately, yes. I don't know how to describe why, but I can tell that not only are you sincere, but you know for a fact that this isn't all just a weird dream."

"Huh, you're taking it a lot better than I did."

"I know, right? It's weird; I expected something that would make you so sad would make me just as sad. But somehow, I know that even if I do die, then we have that time together in the spirit world to look forward to."

"Yeah, about that..."

"What? What is it?" Toph's voice rose.

Aang raised his hands in an effort to ease her worries. "Calm down, it's nothing that you have to worry about, but it kind of makes my life a lot tougher. Remember how I said that I THOUGHT that Roku had taken over my body? Well, that's because he didn't. Not at first at least. There is an evil spirit Toph, and his name is Ozai. He was the one that took over my body that night, and he was the one chanting something at you. But it wasn't to make you move on."

"Wha-...What was it for?"

Aang spoke grimly. "He has a spawn, her name is Azula. He sent her to your next life and sent your spirit back to this life. Now Azula's running wild in whatever your next life is, and on top of that Ozai is still out there and he is expected to strike on the next solstice."

Toph remained silent.

"Why aren't you saying anything?"

"Remember how the guards used to bring their kids to the house? Well there was this guard named Zhao. He had a girl a couple of years older than me, and she used to pick on me all the time. But neither my parents, nor Zhao did anything about it. They just let her keep going until one day; she burned down half the garden. I haven't seen her in a couple years now, but as far as evil spirits named Azula go, that would probably be your best shot."

"Huh, this is all so weird."

"Why?"

"I don't know. It's like everything that is happening to me is directly related to you."

"Well, I'm sorry I'm such a bother."

"No no, that's not what I meant. What I mean is, it's like our destinies are intertwined. We were meant to find each other Toph, and I know I'm going to find a way to save your life."

Toph leaned over and wrapped her arms around him. "I felt that our destinies were intertwined since that first day at the mall. I saw you looking around five minutes before you even knew that I was there. I had so hoped that you would come and say something to me. Several people had been very rude to me that day, laughing at me because I didn't look at them when they passed by. They called me names, and now I see why my parents had tried to protect me.

"But more importantly, I realized that day that there was potential for a real friendship with someone. For the first time, I wouldn't be laughed at, or mocked, or used for something. I knew that you wouldn't desert me, and I still believe that when the time comes, you'll find a way to keep me alive."

"I'm so glad you feel that way."

"But I think we're forgetting one thing."

"What's that?" Aang cocked his head. He had covered everything he knew, hadn't he?

"When does it happen?"

"When does what happen, Toph?"

"When do I die?"

"Oh, I don't know. All you ever told me back in the spirit world was that it was a car crash."

"Nothing else? Why wasn't I more descriptive?!"

They both laughed as Toph's watch alarm began to beep.

"Uh-oh, my parents will be home in two hours. I have to go."

"Oh." Aang's face fell.

"Hey, don't worry, we'll see each other again really soon. I promise."

"When though?"

"I don't know, I'll call you ok?"

Aang looked to the floor and mumbled, "OK."

But suddenly, his head was lifted up by Toph's familiar warm hands. She didn't tease him this time with a quick two-second kiss, but let their affection bloom for as long as they both felt comfortable.

"UGH! WHAT ARE YOU TWO DOING?!"

Toph darted for the window as Aang looked up to see Sokka standing at the door.

"No, you know what? I don't even want to know," Sokka said as he walked down the hallway.

Aang turned around quickly, but Toph was already on her way down the street. Aang jumped up and said from his door, "Where'd you take her?"

"Chili's."

"I thought you said they were closed."

"I know. But Suki didn't. When we got there, she felt so sorry that I had gone to so much trouble, that she offered to go to Texas Roadhouse."

"Wow Sokka, you're a real jerk."

"Hey, at least we close the door before we grope each other."

Before Sokka could see the blood rushing to his cheeks, Aang slammed the door shut.

* * *

**A/N: Woohoo. Two chapters for the day!! That should be enough...right?! shot**

**It is hard to tell when new chapters will come. Probably not until at least a week from Saturday. I have two chapters written, but my waffled worked so hard on making these extra specially amazing, so I'm gonna give her a break. (She just finished school anyway, so she deserves a big break.)**

**At least I didn't leave you off at "YOU'RE GOING TO DIE!!" .../angst**

**RR&E**


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

"Aang, it's time to start your training."

Aang jerked his head up seeing he was in the spirit world.

"Training for what now?"

"For your battle with Ozai," Roku grunted through his teeth.

"Whatever."

* * *

"Good job Aang. You have learned very well today. Now, it's Saturday, go take some time off."

There was a bright flash and Aang awoke with a start.

"Good, you're up. Come on, you told me you'd go with me to the mall today to pick something out for Zuko's birthday party tonight."

"Huh-...What?" Aang looked up groggily and saw the faint outline of Katara.

"Come on, it's already 11. You slept for a long time."

"Wha-...OK..." Aang rolled out of his bed to get dressed.

* * *

"What about this t-shirt? Or wait...what about these jeans? Or wait...what about this hat? Or wait...what ab-..."

Aang forced his finger against Katara's lips.

"Shhhhhhhhhhhhh..." Aang silenced. "Now, do you want my help with Zuko or not?"

Katara could only grunt through Aang's finger, "Mmhmm."

"OK then, let's stop the fangirling for a little bit and be sensible and quick about this," Aang said relinquishing his finger.

"Fine. And don't call me a fangirl anymore. It's not fangirling if I'm actually his girlfriend."

"Yes Katara, that makes is alllll better," Aang rolled his eyes continuing, "Now, first of all...Zuko might wear girl pants, but he doesn't buy them from a girl store. So let's start by leaving DEB and moving to a store he has actually purchased something from before."

"Like where?"

"Hot Topic."

Katara got chills. She grabbed Aang and took him to a bench and sat him down, whispering, "Aang, you know I don't like that store."

"Why not Katara?"

"Because, the people, and the black, and the knives, and the people...it scares me."

Wanting to avoid a hindrance to his returning home, Aang finally resolved, "Fine, I'll go in and pick something that he'll like. Remember, as long as you pay for it, it still counts."

"No it doesn't Aang."

"Oh, so you do want to come and help me find something?"

"NO!" Katara shrieked, gaining her many stares from the people passing by.

Aang leaned really close and whispered, "Then you need to do me a favor. Here's fifty bucks. Go to the EB Games. I tipped the guy to hold their copy of season 2 of The Office for me. Tell him that you're picking it up for Aang and he'll give it to you. As soon as you're done, come back here and wait for me on this bench."

Katara grabbed the money and sped away from the Hot Topic as fast as she could.

Aang chuckled, remembering again why he had once liked Katara, then turned and entered the Hot Topic.

Aang already knew exactly what it was he was going to get for her. He had seen a System of a Down t-shirt that he knew Zuko would love from the front window. He ran in, grabbed it and headed for the line.

There were a lot of people in the line, but Aang peeked up to the front of the line and saw that it was going pretty fast. Mostly because of the girl running the register. She was like a machine. She grabbed everything, knew exactly where to scan it, did the math in her head, bagged the item, and sent the customer on his way. Aang was impressed.

Finally, Aang was next in line behind a large man with huge sideburns. But for some reason, the flow seemed to stop. Aang looked around to see if anything was happening, when he overheard the conversation happening between the girl and the man in front of him.

"Dad! I told you not to come here!"

"Hey, easy now. I just came to give you something."

"What are you doing this for? I have this job. I don't need money."

"I just thought I'd do something nice for you."

"Well, it's very much appreciated, but I don't want it."

Aang suddenly heard a smack.

"You listen to me! You're gonna take this god-forsaken money!" And with that, the man turned and walked away, but not without turning to shout, "And you better not be late for Zuko's party Azula!"

Aang's eyes widened as far as they could as he watched the man storm off.

"Hey! You gonna buy that or what!?"

Aang quickly spun around and threw the t-shirt on the counter hoping that it would make things go faster. The girl scanned it slightly slower with a hesitation that wasn't there before the encounter with her father. Aang began tapping his foot as she took the ink clip off the shirt and handed it back to him.

"Now go away!" she practically shouted, turning around burying her head in her hands. Aang obeyed struck with fear of stumbling on the spawn of the very evil he was trying to destroy.

* * *

"Hey Aang, I got it. You get Zuko something good?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I got him something. Uh...we need to go. Now."

"Why? What's the rush?" Katara asked.

"I'll explain later. Let's just get going."

Aang grabbed Katara's arm and practically dragged her past the pet shop, the candy store, and through the parking lot to the road when he finally slowed down and walked at a normal pace.

"OK Aang, what's going on?"

"Hot...Topic...girl...Azula..." Aang muttered between heavy breaths.

"SEE?! I told you that place was evil!"

"No, you don't understand, that girl...how does she know Zuko?"

"What girl Aang?! You're not making any sense!"

"There was a girl in the Hot Topic store. Her name was Azula. How does Zuko know her?"

"Oh, Azula is his cousin. Iroh's brother, Zhao? Yeah, his daughter."

"And they're coming to the party tonight?"

"I guess so. Probably. It IS his sixteenth."

Aang looked around frantically.

"Ok, can you go home without me? I have to go talk to someone, right away."

"You mean Toph?" Katara asked with a cute smirk.

"Yes, Katara...Toph. But it's more important than you think."

"OK, sure, whatever. Just make sure you shut the door before you guys start in."

Grabbing The Office from Katara, Aang scowled, "I'm going to kill Sokka," and ran off in the direction of the mansion.

* * *

**A/N: I like this chapter. It shows that it is possible for Katara and Aang to be friends and do stuff like go to the mall alone together and not be shipped. glares at Kataangers**

**Kudos to WaffledFlambe for the beta-ed chapter, even though she kept forgetting to send it for three days. . I leave her at the mercy of you guys. (jkjk...be easy on her)**

**Double-post since it's been a couple weeks. So now you may continue on to chapter 11.**


	12. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

"Psst! Toph! Help me in!" Aang whispered.

"Oh! Aang, here," Toph offered her hand to help him over the ledge of the window.

"Thanks Toph," he said as they exchanged a quick kiss. "Here, I got you something." He handed her the DVDs.

"Oh my gosh! Aang! Seriously!?"

"Yeah, I figured that you could listen to them on your own if you wanted, in case I'm not here to talk you through it."

"Oh my gosh! Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she wrapped her arms around him and they kissed again.

"So," she continued, "what brings you over here besides this? You're coming to Zuko's party tonight, aren't you?"

"I'll tell you why in a second. I just want to relax for a little bit. I've been shopping with Katara for Zuko's present all morning."

"Ouch. Here's the bed," Toph pointed.

"Thanks."

* * *

The two ended up going ahead and popping in another episode to watch while they waited to leave for Zuko's party.

_Yes, I've acted before. I was in our high school's production of "Oklahoma!" I played the role of Mutey the Mailman. They...had too many kids so they made up roles like that. I was good._

The two rolled on the bed laughing hysterically.

"Oh my gosh Dwight! Just stop! Just...stop trying!"

"X-D-D-D-D-D!!"

Toph stopped while Aang kept laughing.

"Did...did you just SAY 'X-D?', like...out loud?" she asked in disbelief.

Aang slowed to a stop as well. "Ummm...no?"

"HAHAHAHAHAHAH!! YOU ARE SUCH A NERD!!" Toph said, giving him a sock in the arm.

"I thought I told you not to do that," Aang muttered.

"Awww...here...let me kiss it and make it better." She did.

"And here's one to let you know that I don't care that you're a nerd, because you're my nerd," Toph and Aang had lost count how many times they had kissed that afternoon. But this time, Aang broke it early.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Toph asked, concerned, "Oh come on, I don't think you're actually a nerd."

"No, it's not that, it's just...Zuko's party tonight."

"Why? What about it? You don't want to go?"

"No, it's just...ok...I guess I have to tell you."

"Tell me what?" Toph asked, her concern turning to worry.

"I saw Azula and Zhao today."

"Where?" Toph asked quickly, sitting up.

"At the mall today. She works in Hot Topic. Zhao came in and gave her some money for something, and when she told him she didn't want it, he smacked her. But worst of all, when he left, he shouted to her, 'You better not be late for Zuko's party tonight either!'"

"Wait, how does she know Zuko?"

"I had the same question, so I asked Katara if she knew Azula. She said that Zhao is Zuko's uncle and Azula is his cousin. I'm guessing Iroh invited them without asking Zuko."

Toph cocked her head to the side. "You mean Zuko doesn't like them either?"

"I don't know, but I don't know how anyone could."

"Heh. So, what does this mean?"

"I don't know," Aang said, feeling so lost in the situation. "I guess we just go to the party tonight and see what happens. Tomorrow morning I'll ask Roku about it and see what he says to do."

"I guess that's all you can do."

Aang sighed.

"What's the matter now?" Toph asked.

"Huh? Oh, nothing. It just feels so good to be able to tell someone all this."

"I'm glad you feel that way. And you know I'm always here for you to talk to Aang, especially when it's stuff like this. Besides, you know I'd kill you if you didn't tell me anyway."

Aang chuckled, "Yes Toph, I know," and with that he leaned back in as the two finished what they had started.

* * *

**A/N: See, I promised a double-post...XDDD**

**This is mostly a segue chapter to the next one or two chapters. I guess I should forwarn you. I'm in that stage of the Taang relationship where they've been dating for a little while now, and all the fluff is, somehow, starting to lose its luster. Unfortunately, for most Taang fics, this is where the story runs out of steam, and this stage makes or breaks how the overall impression of the story is from beginning to end.**

**Like I hinted at, the next one or two chapters are going to be crucial because it is going to be the stress chapters on Toph and Aang's relationship, as well as set the remainder of the plot into motion. I've given a few details to WaffledFlambe, and she says that the idea sounds pretty solid, so I'm assuming that that is the direction I will be taking from here on out.**

**Enjoy the Taangst.**


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

"OK, I need to go get ready," said Aang with a sigh.

"Excuse me?"

He sighed again.

"OK, come on, out with it. What up with the sigh?" Toph sat up.

"No, nothing, it's just..."

"You can't go a whole hour without me? Is that it?" she interrupted.

"Toph, don't make fun of me like that," Aang mumbled.

"Why? You're not being any fun. Come on, I have to have a little bit of space. You think I'm going to let you stay and watch me get dressed?" Toph rambled on and on.

"OK! I'll go!" and without another word, he grabbed his jacket, opened the window, jumped out, and walked away from the estate.

* * *

"Lying is not your best option here Aang."

"I know Sokka, but I really can't think about her tonight," Aang argued back.

"Really? Because from what you told me, it sounds like you don't want to get away from her," Sokka chuckled.

"It's not funny," he shot Sokka a glare.

"Yes it is. I know exactly what your problem is. This whole girlfriend thing is so new to you that you have no idea what to do with her."

Aang's glare increased. "Continue, but I would advise doing so cautiously," he muttered through his teeth as his fists became clenched.

As if no death threats had been issued, Sokka continued, "It's simple. You don't want to make her a priority because of other stuff that you have to do, like friends and school, and whatever the heck else you do. But when you're with her, she's all you can think about and it feels so right to you that you don't want to let her go. That part of you is what surfaced a half hour ago."

Aang nodded, allowing Sokka to continue.

"But the problem is that she was the one encouraging that you two leave each other alone for a couple hours. This totally messed with your hard drive and now you're about to do something incredibly stupid and pointless."

"Wow, that was very insightful. When did you get smart with this kind of stuff Sokka?"

"Ugh, ten years of Suki would do this to any man."

"But you are wrong about one thing...this won't be stupid and pointless. Zuko wanted Katara's "help" setting up for tonight right? Well, that means you "have" to drive over there with her. And since you guys are my ride, I'll "have" to go with you tonight, meaning that Toph can't come."

Sokka facepalmed. He knew this how this would end. But he was sick of trying to help, so he just left Aang alone to deal with his life however he saw fit. He had done all he could do.

* * *

Toph grabbed her cell phone off the bed after slipping on her shirt. Flipping it open, she read:

_Sorry, can't come to get you tonight. Sokka and Katara are going early and I'm not sure if you're ready yet. I hope you can still get there -TT_

Puzzled, she quickly punched in:

_Ummm...just tell them to come get me early? I've been ready for like, a half-hour now. I don't mind. -Tophy_

* * *

"EFF!" Aang shouted, "Turn around and go get her."

Sokka smirked as he turned back onto the highway. He had plenty of experience and knew exactly when to turn into the gas station to "get gas" while Aang waited for the message back from Toph.

"No problem," he quipped as he turned onto the side street that led to the house.

* * *

"And here we are!" shouted Sokka as they pulled into Zuko's driveway.

"Ugh, do you have to do that every time we go somewhere?" grumbled Katara.

"Hey, you guys go ahead. We'll catch up," Toph said out of nowhere.

"We will?" asked Aang, who had been silent the entire ride.

"Yes. We. Will." Toph spat, shooting a glare at Aang.

The doors slammed shut leaving the two alone.

"Ok, what is the deal Aang?"

"What are you talking about?" he grumbled.

"Oh come on. We're not going to do it this way. You know exactly what I'm talking about."

As he gazed out the window, he continued to deny it, "No, I don't."

"Fine then. We WILL talk later though," she stated while getting out and slamming the door.

Aang got out too and approached her, but was stopped when Toph said, "Nope. Not tonight. I'm going to have fun tonight, and I can't do that when you're in this kind of crappy mood. You can deal with it however you want, but until you get an attitude adjustment, don't come near me tonight."

And with that, she sped up and made her way up the sidewalk without him.

* * *

"Isn't the music a little loud!?" Aang shouted covering his ears.

"You got Zuko a milk cow?!" shouted Suki back to him.

"Case in point," he thought as he sat down alone along the wall while everyone else danced.

Aang had not danced once the entire night and was not planning to even with the party winding down. Whether he was before or not, after his confrontation with Toph he definitely was in a sour mood now. And he knew that dancing was not going to make him feel better. So he resolved to the seat by the punch bowl, which Suki had just left to rejoin Sokka after giving up on Aang.

It was time for the last song, and everyone was encouraged to mix up partners since it was supposed to be a fun song. Aang watched as Katara excused herself to the restroom during the last song. He then kept his eye on Zuko as he began to walk toward Aang at the punch bowl.

"Hey! Scarface! Come here!"

Both Aang and Zuko looked over to see who had been calling, and both mouths dropped when they saw Toph waving her arm in the middle of the dance floor.

"I wanna dance with you since I didn't get you a present! Come on, Sweetness isn't here! No one has to know!" she continued to yell.

Zuko rolled his eyes and rejoined the party on the dance floor to the sounds of much applause.

"Pathetic, isn't it?"

Aang heard the girl speak, but was too fixated on the commotion on the floor to give her a glance.

"Yeah, I guess," he mumbled back.

"Look, Katara told me that I scared the crap out of you today. Well, Zuko overheard and now he's making me apologize to you."

"Mmhmm," Aang continued to ignore the girl next to him.

"Ummm, are you even listening to me?"

Aang didn't hear her because the music had started again. All of a sudden, it was like Zuko and Toph came alive together on the dance floor. This was too much.

"Hey! I'm talking to y-"

"Shut up and dance with me," he interrupted, dragging the girl by the wrist to the dance floor, with his eyes still focused on the two in the middle.

"What?! You get your hands off me!"

Aang couldn't hear.

"I said, get your hands off me!!" she continued to scream.

Aang pulled all the more on the resistant arm.

"HEY!!"

Aang finally stopped and turned to see the stark, raving mad face of Azula glaring at him. Then, without warning, she raised her hand and backlashed across Aang's face sending him spiraling to the ground.

Azula promptly marched over to Toph and Zuko, pointed at the boy still writhing on the floor, and screamed as loudly as she could to both of them, "HOW DO YOU TWO PUT UP WITH THAT!?"

Immediately all dancing stopped. The only movement on the floor was that of Aang still clutching his now-scarred face, and the only sound was the silent whimpering that he made as tears came to his eyes at not only the pain of the sharpened nails against his cheeks and eyes, but even more than that the mental and emotional pain at his blind stupidity that he had been succumbing to the entire day.

Toph excused herself to Zuko, grabbed Aang by the shirt collar, and dragged him out slamming Zuko's front door shut.

* * *

**A/N: It's been a while hasn't it? We've had a total of 6 new episodes since I last posted, but unfortunately...there is to be no more. I'll give you this moment to sob into your hands like a 5 year-old girl...**

**Now then, very likely that I will double post tonight, because I also have chapter 13 beta-ed. BUT! Bigger news, chapter 14 is also beta-ed and ready to post...but I'm going to hold off for the time being and see how these two do. It is very possible however, that 14 will be posted tomorrow night. We'll just see how it goes...hm?**


	14. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

"...WELL?"

"Well what?" Aang snapped back.

"YOU KNOW GOSH DARN WELL WHAT!!"

"What? Me dancing with Azula? You jealous or something?"

Toph breathed in slowly and exhaled.

"Remind me someday to tell you everything wrong with what you just said."

"Why not now?" asked Aang, "The party's over."

"Ok, fine. You know what? That's a great idea," Toph said walking away.

"Wait, where are you going?" Aang called.

"Hey, you're the one that wants to hear this, and it sure as heck ain't happening here after that fiasco inside. We're going to my house, and we're NOT waiting on Sokka to drive us." And she didn't say another word until she was in her room.

Aang knew when to obey, so he followed her to the Bei Fong mansion.

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"Sit down on the bed. Now," Toph pointed. "OK, so let me get this straight. First, you don't want to leave this afternoon, and then you pulled that phony story about not being able to come get me."

"That wasn-.."

"Don't you DARE interrupt me right now. It most certainly was phony. I'm not an idiot, Aang."

Aang kept his mouth shut.

"Then, because of your own stubbornness, you spend the entire party alone by the punch bowl because you're throwing a pity party for yourself for God only knows what reason. But apparently, since you can't have any fun, I can't have any fun either, which makes dancing with Zuko for his BIRTHDAY off limits. But apparently, when you're in a bad mood, you can grab anyone you feel like and drag them onto the dance floor to show off for me? But in the midst of all of this...did you not once ever acknowledge that it was your SWORN ENEMY who you grabbed off that chair next to you?"

"Now, that's not fair Toph. I didn't know it was-"

"Not fair? NOT FAIR?! Let me tell you what wasn't fair about tonight. I wanted to relax and have a good time tonight with more friends than just you, but because you're going all depressed and crapping on everyone's good time, there's no possible way for me to do that. Every time I turned around I had to stand there and look at you trying as hard as you could to be pathetic. And let me tell you something, it worked. But I think it worked a little too well for your plans, because now I'm not sure that you aren't just pathetic."

The room was filled with silence.

"Are you through?" Aang dared to ask.

"Yes."

"Well, what do you want to do about it?"

Toph was confused. "What do you mean me? YOU are the one that has some explaining to do. I'm not doing anything anymore except listening."

Aang looked around the room trying to figure out what to say.

"Well, are you gonna say something or not?"

Without a word, Aang stood up, walked over to Toph who hadn't been able to make herself sit down the entire night. Standing four inches taller than her, he looked down into her eyes that were now aimed at him even though they couldn't see. Then, almost a whisper, Aang said what he had been wanting to say all day.

"I'm in love with you."

He then leaned in and gave her not the longest, nor the most romantic, but certainly the sweetest kiss they had ever shared.

Toph stammered, "Wha...What do you expect me to say to that?"

"Shhhh," Aang hushed, "You don't have to say anything because I'm not done. I'm in love with you, and that means that I would do anything to be with you. I'd dance with my mortal enemy to make you jealous. I would let go of Katara or Zuko or anyone else just to be alone with you. I would fight with you just so I could stay a little bit longer. I love you so much that you don't even have to feel the same way right now. Your feelings towards me can't effect how much I want to hold you and love you for the rest of my life. And nothing you can say or do, not even dismissing mutual feelings is going to change that."

"Now it's your turn to hush," Toph whispered.

"Why?"

"Because I do feel the same way about you, and we can't kiss like we both really want to with your mouth flapping all over the place."

And it was here that the longest and most romantic kiss happened.

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"I do have one question though," Toph stated.

"And what's that?" Aang inquired.

"Did you feel like an idiot at all when you realized that you dragged Azula onto the dance floor and was about to get your little face smashed?"

"Gosh, I don't even want to think about that," Aang said as they both giggled.

Suddenly, the door swung open.

"Toph? What are you doing? Who is this?!"

"Ummm...Mom, Dad...this is Aang, and we're in love."

* * *

**A/N: Double-postage FTQ. I really like this chapter, mostly because it relates right back to the Casino Night chapter with the line "I'm in love with you."**

**ZOMT!! HER PARENTS!! WHAT THE EFF!?**

**You'll find out...like I said, possibly tomorrow. It might depend on your reviewage, but then again, I might just be nice because I'm just like that. :)**


	15. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

"Guards! Guards! Get up here now!" Toph's father immediately shouted into the hallway.

"Wait, Dad, let me explain!"

"NO! There's no explaining for you to do. I know exactly what's going on," her father began to rant, "Didn't you think we'd find out? I've known about you two for weeks."

"I apologize Mr. Bei Fong. This is all my fault for not introducing myself to you before," said Aang with an air of nervousness. He continued, "If you would allow me to explain, I'm sure I can clear the whole matter up."

"No. There is nothing to clear up. I told you that I've known for weeks now. There's nothing you can describe to me that I don't already know about."

"Well, I don't mean to be rude sir, but I believe that there are a couple of thi-"

"I. Said. No. Now, you will either get out of this house right now or the guards will escort you out."

"Please sir, I'm begging you to let me-"

"What part of NO have you not learned, you little twerp?!"

"HEY!" Toph shrieked, "YOU, do not call HIM a twerp."

"Excuse me Toph? What did you just say?" Mr. Bei Fong said, taken aback.

"You heard me Dad," she spat out at him, "Now, if you have any respect for me as a daughter, and if you expect me to have any respect for you in the future; we are going to all go downstairs, you are going to call off the guards, and we are going to sit down and talk this thing out."

"Young lady, we will have a long discussion about what our mutual respect for each other entails later, but I will not lose a sense of dignity in front of the boy..."

"Aang," Toph interrupted.

"Excuse me?"

"You will call him Aang. That is his name, not 'boy'. Do you call me girl? Or daughter?"

Mr. Bei Fong was once again taken aback, but then he continued, "Fine. I will not force...Aang...to be a part of THAT discussion tonight. And since you feel so strongly about this, I will comply with your request this one time, out of...respect."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Now, you have as much time as you need to explain to me and my wife what you feel is so important about what you and Toph have been doing. But you have tried my patience enough as it is, and I wouldn't advise trying it any further."

And with that, Mr. Bei Fong sat back and listened as Aang told the whole story:

"Well, it all started on that day at the mall when Toph was there. I was off walking in the mall and I saw Toph alone on the bench. I walked over to her, we talked, and we became friends. Well, the next day, she wasn't there, but I found a note that told me her phone number and her computer contacts so I could IM her and text her.

"The first time we snuck out, we just went to the park for a while. After that, we were leaving your house almost every night after you went to bed. But lately, we haven't had to as much because you've been away on business and we could just go any time we wanted to. Our first kiss was a month or two ago, and we've been dating ever since. Today, we had a little bit of a scuff, but," he glanced over at Toph who had a faint smile in the midst of the tense situation, "...but I'm pretty sure we worked it out after we got home from the party tonight."

"So, let me just get it all in order. First, you have the guts to just walk up to Toph in the middle of the mall and ask for her number..."

"WHAT?!" Toph and Aang yelled simultaneously.

"Hey, you've had your chance, and now I'm going to tell you what this sounds like to me."

He cleared his throat and continued, "Then, you get even more courage and dare to sneak her out of the house right from under our noses, and even worse...you do it more often when we're not even here to protect her. Next, you invite her to a party where God knows what could happen. Then, after a fight, you still think that you two should be together? Tell me where this makes sense."

Toph stood up and walked over to her father. Even though they both knew that she couldn't see him, she aimed her glare right at his eyes. Then, without warning, she sucker punched him right in the gut.

While Mr. Bei Fong was still reeling from the blow, she began to shout at him, "HOW DARE YOU, YOU CREEP! IF YOU REALLY CARED ABOUT ME THIS MUCH, HOW COME YOU WERE EVEN ON THOSE EFFING BUSINESS TRIPS?!"

"Young lady, you will sit yourself down right n-"

"NO!" she shrieked, "I am going to speak my mind, and YOU are going to listen."

Her parents settled down, but the glare they shot at their daughter did not ease any.

"All my life, you've treated me more like a vase that you want to sit up on our mantle than a daughter, and for what reason? Is it because I'm blind? I don't think so. You know very well what I'm capable of, otherwise you would have stopped Aang from coming here a long time ago. You know what I think it is? I think you're ashamed of me. You feel so sorry for yourselves because you have a disgraceful little blind daughter that you have to keep a secret from the world. You're afraid that if the world found out about me and they found out that the might Bei Fongs couldn't even produce a single healthy child, then you might lose some big business transaction. And now, someone does care about me, Aang.

"For the first time in my life, I've found someone that treats me like what I am, human. Heh, he didn't even realize I was blind at first. I had to push him the whole way to even realize that I was different. But you criticize him for trying to steal me away from you, which brings me back to my original point. I'm nothing more than property to you. I'm valuable, and you know how valuable I am, but you don't want to world to see me because you're also afraid of something else. You're afraid you'll lose me. Well, I have news for you. You don't have to worry about losing me. If you were ever going to lose me, I would have been gone a long time ago, the first time that you deserted me in this house to go out on these stupid "business" trips.

"But you haven't lost me, and you never will. And it's for one reason only, I love you. I shouldn't, but it's because you're my parents and it's because I believe that love is unconditional. And if you have any ounce of respect, or more importantly, a mutual love for me, you'll realize that you can't keep that kind of love all to yourself. You'll realize that the right thing to do in the situation would be to share that love, not just my love, but the same unconditional love that I inherited from both of you with the rest of the world. And most importantly, you'll realize that this love has to start with him."

_BONG!_

"Wow, one o' clock?" said Mr. Bei Fong, "It's awfully late isn't it? I'll tell you what you two...I've learned a lot tonight about both of you. As a parent, I'm not ready to accept the idea that you two are dating, but after a speech like that, which as a parent I know was sincere, I have no choice but to allow it for the time being."

Aang and Toph both hugged each other as tightly as they could and yelled in congratulations to each other.

"Now, before you celebrate too much, realize that this sneaking out stuff is going to stop. I may have made a big step tonight in becoming the father that I realize I should have been all along, but that does not change the fact that I am not in favor of this."

He turned to Aang. "We, meaning me and you, have a lot to talk about. So, stop by my office tomorrow afternoon, and we will talk about how we are going to deal with this, like mature adults," and as he finished that sentence, everyone in the room smiled for the first time all night.

"Thank you Mr. Bei Fong," Aang bowed in respect, but Mr. Bei Fong grabbed Aang's shoulder and raised him back up.

"Please Aang, call me Lao."

* * *

**A/N: Woah! How about the epik Taangst huh?**

**Double-post, explanation next chapter.**

**RR&E**


	16. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

"Aang!"

"Wha-? Who's there?" Aang sat up groggily, then straightened up when he saw Roku towering over him.

"Oh, Roku...I'm sorry...I slept in."

"And what possessed you to stay out so late last night?!" The anger in Roku's voice did not recede.

"Well, uh, you see...Me and Toph..."

"Ahhh...so that's why you've been neglecting your duties as the Avatar? Don't try to play dumb Aang, I can see through to the mortal world, and I know what goes on in your life...probably better than you do."

"Oh...so you were at the party last night..." Aang hung his head.

"Yes, Aang, I saw everything that happened with you at that party last night. And I mean everything," Roku growled.

"Hey, listen...that was an honest..."

"Mistake?!" Roku interrupted again. "Aang, listen to me and listen to me well. You have gotten very careless with your social life, and dancing with your sworn enemy is not the least of an example of this."

"I know, I know. I need to be more careful with who I come into contact with. But Roku, here's what I don't get. Azula is weird, but I find it hard to believe that she is the spawn of the most evil spirit in the universe."

"That is because her spirit is repressed by Toph's future body. This is Ozai's plan. On the night of the solstice, Ozai will call Azula and she will emerge from Toph's future body and she will wreak havoc in the mortal world while Ozai completes his plans in the spirit world."

"Yes, I know. But I just find it hard to believe that the poor girl is going to be the source of all evil in a matter of days. I mean, look at her messed-up family. What a horrible father!" Aang exclaimed.

"Hmmm, I was afraid this would happen. It seems that your attachment to Toph is transcending lifetimes and you don't necessarily have feelings for Azula, but you have artificial sympathy that would not exist if you were not so attached to Toph's spirit. You do not have the sight that I possess when I look at Azula's soul. You see just another messed up girl when you look at Azula, but I see vile and black hatred for all spirits."

"Well, if that's true, then I don't know what to do. I mean, if you're right," Aang reasoned, "it's almost as if she is deceiving me."

"So it seems..."

The two stood in silence for a few moments.

"Well then," Roku broke the silence, "I guess there is no other solution. My decision is this. You are not to see Toph until after the solstice."

"WHAT?! THAT IS COMPLETLY UNREASONABLE!!"

Roku's face quickly turned angry. "You dare question my authority and experience in a situation like this?! The worlds are in danger Aang! This is no time to be fooling around!"

"I don't care!" Aang shouted as his anger grew to rival Roku's. "It is an insult to me that you don't trust me to make the right decision when the time is right. Am I the Avatar or not? If I remember correctly, you died a long time ago. I'm better off than you are just by being alive!"

Roku would hear no more. "My solution just became an order. The solstice is in 7 days. You will not see Toph at all until after the solstice. And if you try anything sneaky, I WILL know. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Master Roku," Aang spat out with more than a hint of sarcasm.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Aang sat up in bed feeling dizzy after his spirit world journey.

"How dare he do that to me?" he said out loud.

Aang looked over at his cell phone. It was 8:45 in the morning.

He picked it up and quickly punched in:

_Hey, meet at the park? Half-hour? -TT_

Five minutes later, the reply came:

_Sure. I'll see you at the tree. -Tophy_

Satisfied, Aang began pulling on his shirt.

"Who says I was going to be sneaky about it?" he muttered under his breath.

* * *

**A/N: O.o...I'm going to refrain from commenting on what just happened.**

**Chapter 14 was beta-ed, and I was ready to post it tonight, but one of my friends was leaving so I wanted to get this chapter written too since I had already started so that she could read it. This chapter was not beta-ed however, so expect a few minor mistakes. It shouldn't be too bad though since it is so short.**

**We're almost there. This Roku/Aang/Toph arc is the penultimate conflict before the solstice. But that is all I will say about that. This chapter is so short because the rest of the set-up for the solstice comes in the next 1 or 2 chapters and when I looked ahead to what was happening in the next chapters, it was going to be hard to find a breaking point farther along in the plot. So this chapter is short. Next chapter will be relatively long, and chapter 17 is up in the air until I see how much I get accomplished in 16. Right now, I'm looking at rounding out the story in not so many more chapters. I really need to see where I end up on conflicts first because trust me, there are going to be a LOT of conflicts going into the solstice. It won't be until after chapter 18 that I can give a rough estimate as to how much longer the story will go.**

**Also, a special announcement for my more mature readers. There will be an M-rated alternate ending posted simultaneosly with the final chapter (which may or may not be a cliff-hanger to another sequel. I really need to see how I feel after getting this solstice plot sorted out.)**

**But yes, be prepared for an M-rated alternate ending at the very end. Details as to why it will be M-rated are currently classified until it is released. But there will be an A/N at the beginning of the chapter explaining why it is rated M.**

**RR&E**


	17. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Aang grinned as he saw Toph sitting down under the tree as he approached the park.

He stepped through the gate and shouted out, "Hey, I'm coming!"

Toph turned to face him relieved that she heard the smile in his voice. His text had seemed urgent and she was concerned that something was wrong. But her relief faded away when she could feel his real emotions through the ground as he got closer. She had felt it before a few times, and it only meant bad news. The most recent she could remember was when he drug Azula onto the dance floor against her will.

He finally was almost to her and he broke into a run as he approached the tree.

Then, suddenly, he tripped on a root and stumbled hard to the ground.

"Aang!" Toph screamed as she broke into a sprint toward him. But it was useless. By the time she reached him, he was out cold.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Aang, wake up!" the familiar voice summoned.

"What do you want Roku?"

"Don't play dumb with me! You know exactly what happened! Why in the world did you feel so compelled to break the rule that I explicitly put in place only a few hours ago?!"

"Because it was unfair. Toph had nothing to do with it and you were punishing her for no reason."

"I wasn't punishing Toph! I was punishing you! You're right, Toph has done nothing! It is YOU that have become reckless and it is YOU that will now be punished even further!" Roku exclaimed.

"Then answer me this. Who punished you when you let Ozai take over my body?" Aang said relatively calmly.

Roku was stunned. But only for a few moments as his fury increased.

"Grow up Aang! You think that you're always going to have someone in charge of you that will keep you in line!? You think that is what I have?! You think that is how the world works?! Crime and punishment? Let me tell you something right now Aang. You better wake up before that line of thinking puts you in a deeper mess of trouble than you already are. Your reckless behavior..."

"Reckless behavior?! You think what I'm doing is reckless?!" Aang interrupted, "How dare you! Do you know what it's like knowing that the person you love more than anything in the world is going to die!? Do you know what it's like to even love someone?! Apparently not, because if you did, you would understand why I do the things I do."

Roku sighed. "I understand why you do the things you do, it's just tha-"

"When does she die?!" Aang asked.

"What?"

"You heard me. When does she die?!" Aang continued to press, even though he doubted that Roku would tell him.

"I can't tell you that Aang," Roku hung his head.

"Why not!? What do you mean you can't?!"

"Because I don't know! I don't know when she dies! I only know what I've seen, and I've seen just as much as you have."

"Is there anyone who knows?"

Roku paused. "You don't want to know."

"Is there ANYONE who knows?" Aang asked, increasingly persistent.

Roku refused to answer.

"I swear Roku, if you don't tell me..."

"KOH!" Roku shouted in Aang's face. He then calmed himself down as he explained, "His name is Koh, but he is very dangerous."

"You mean that old legend about the face-stealer?"

"No, that's just an urban myth. He has no more power than you do and he certainly can't steal anyone's face," Roku revealed.

"Then where is he?! I have to know."

"He is only a little ways from here. Go down the steps and hang a left and you'll see his cave in the distance. But you do need to be careful Aang. He is very deceitful, and you may not like everything that he has to say. Get in and get out fast, or he'll tell you things to make your blood curdle," Roku finished solemnly.

"I'll be back in a while," Aang assured as he made his way down the steps of Roku's temple.

As he disappeared in the distance, Roku muttered to himself, "I sure hope so."

* * *

**A/N: Another short chapter. Next one should be somewhat lengthy as the overall conflict of the story is finally revealed.**

**Gah! I feel like such an idiot. I'm surprised that no one has caught on to this and I feel so stupid for not catching it earlier than I did. I'm referring back to the last chapter and a couple other chapters where Aang and Toph are texting back and forth.**

**Wait...Aang and...TOPH...are texting back and forth?**

**As a result of my stupidity, I am forced into the creation of magic texting. This is also known as a plot device, or being a smart alec. This magical process allows Toph to see only what comes to her through texts and it also allows me to escape from this predicament and not have to actually put some effort in and rewrite several chapters.**

**Do not fear though. Magic texting will NOT return because when Aang fell, he fell on Toph's phone and her new phone does not have the magic texting feature. (This is also an attempt at being a smart alec.)**

**So yeah, no more texting for Aang and Toph because I don't want to be constantly reminded of my stupidity.**


	18. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Aang felt a chill run down his spine as he approached the entrance to Koh's cave.

He looked around him to get a better grasp of his surroundings. Everywhere behind him was now shrouded in fog and he could only see about 100 yards in front of him, as if there was anything to see. All that was there was the path he was standing on, and the cave in front of him. He looked to the left and he looked to the right of the cave, but all he could feel was just a vast empty space that seemed to expand as far as Aang could see. But strangely, he could almost feel the emptiness closing in on him as he made his final approach to the cave.

"Hello?! Koh?! Are you here?!" Aang cupped his hand to his mouth as he shouted.

"Yessss...I...am...heeeeerrrrreeeee..." a slinky sounding voice whispered from the back of the cave.

Aang began to walk into the cave.

"Stop! Do not come any further! I will come to you."

More than willing to spare himself the pleasure of entering the cave, Aang remained where he was as he saw the shadow from the cave grow larger.

It was human in shape, but as it came closer to Aang, he became aware that the shape lacked any detail. There was only the outline of a human with a black void taking over the rest of the body even more ominously than the vast expanse that surrounded the cave. It was as if Koh were, himself, a shadow. He was void of showing emotion and as he finally was within an arm's length of Aang, Aang was able to tell that the spirit was not human in any way but it's shape. It was like a black hole that trapped all light to form the silhouette of a human.

"What...do...you...want...Avataahhh?"

The voice did not come from the shadow, and Aang realized that it was not actually audible. It was now that Aang realized that Koh communicated telepathically. However, to guard against Koh reading unwanted thoughts, Aang decided to continue to speak as to not get distracted by his own thoughts and reveal something potentially important to Koh.

"Are you Koh?" Aang asked as a mere formality.

"Yesss...I...am...heeee..." the voice told Aang inside his head.

"I need to ask you a question?"

"Oh no...Avataahhh...you...require...more...than...one...anssswerrr..."

Confused, Aang continued, "When will Toph Bei Fong die?"

"Ahhhh...A very interesssstttting night this will beeeeee..."

"Explain yourself," Aang hurriedly interrupted with a hint of a threat in his voice.

"On the night of the girl'ssss deathhhh," Koh's voice sped up but still seemed to overpronounce some syllables, "You will be conflicted in many waysssss."

"What do you mean?" Aang inquired.

"You sssseeeeeeee, the girl'ssss death is not the only one ssssscheduled for that evening. You are going to have to choossssssseee Avatah. Will you ssssssave the girl? Or will you fulfill your duty to the wwwwwworld?"

Aang had wasted enough time with the spirit and became impatient. "I didn't ask for a counseling session, I only asked you one thing. When. Does. Toph. Die?!"

"It is sssstrange when a young boy like yourself seeks to reversssse the order of things. You have already met her in the affffffterlife, no? What makesssss you think you are going to do anythhhhhing to change this nnnnnnow?"

"Are...are you saying that I won't be able to save her?"

"I'm assssking you. You've met her in sssssspirit form. Time isssss an illusion. If you had ssaved her in the future, tell me...how then did you mmmmmeet her in the passssst?"

Aang paused, letting Koh's words sink in.

"Ahhhhh...You don't know, do you Avatahhhhhhh?? You don't have an anssssswer for me do you? Well, sssssince you have bored me with your lack of undersssstanding of the sssituation, I will humor you and tell you what night she diessssss."

"Tell me now!!" Aang screamed, on the verge of tears.

"She...will...die..." Koh slowed his speech once more as he retreated back to his cave, "On...the...night...of...the...great...battle...of...Ozai..."

Aang had already began to let tears fall as he watched the shadow slink back to his lair.

"No," he whispered, "It can't be. Tha-...That's not fair. THAT'S NOT FAIR!!"

"Yesssss..." Koh hissed, "She...dies...on...the...night...of...the...solssss...ticcccceeeee..." And as the outline vanished from sight, Aang felt a sudden pulse in his back as he then had a vision of Sokka's car mashed into a tree with a single dainty hand hanging out of the passenger's window.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!" Aang squealed at the top of his lungs, pushing tears out as he crumpled to the ground in a crying mess.

* * *

Roku lifted his head to see Aang trudging back to the temple.

As the boy finally arrived in the prescence of Roku, he lifted his head showing the evidence of the now-pending tragedy.

"It's not good..." he finally choked out.

For the next five minutes, Roku wrapped his arms around the young Avatar, understanding of his pain, and comforted him as he wet Roku's robe with tears.

* * *

**A/N: Wow, not sure I want to ruin the effect of this chapter with a lot of words.**

**Not as long as I thought the chapter would be, and I'm sorry but I'm even more unsure now of how long the story will end up being.**

**This should be the last chapter that doesn't get beta-ed because WaffledFlambe comes back tomorrow from vacay. Hopefully I did a pretty good job of editing.**

**RR&E**


	19. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

"Roku, what am I going to do about this?"

Aang had stopped crying by now and he had conveyed his information from Koh to Roku.

"Well, it is definitely a pickle. Koh is not known to lie, but I can't bring myself to believe what he says about all this."

"He makes perfectly good points though! If I've already seen Toph's spirit, that means that I didn't stop her death in the future!" Aang exclaimed.

"Yes Aang, but you have to remember what I have always said. Time is an illusion. I promise you that I will find out everything that I can to help the situation between now and tomorrow night. At that time, I will call you back to the spirit world, and we will go over the plan for Saturday night," Roku explained.

With no arguments against the plan, Aang conceded and agreed to be ready at his house at midnight the next night.

* * *

"Oh my gosh! You're awake!" Toph shouted.

"What?" asked Aang.

"You tripped and fell...again..." Toph said flatly.

"You know, this kind of thing needs to stop. You're lucky Katara and Kana weren't in town today or else you would not be going to prom," Aang heard Sokka say.

"Wait, what?!" Aang asked sitting up.

"Ummm...you need to stop falling?"

"No."

"You're lucky the ice queen and Gran-Gran weren't here today?"

"NO! The last thing! What did you say about prom?!"

"Oh," Sokka realized, as he began to munch on some pizza rolls, "Yeah, you wouldn't be going to prom if they found you in this condition. They'd chain you to the bed for three weeks to make sure you were healthy again."

Toph and Sokka laughed, but Aang was still confused.

"Who said I was going to prom?" he asked.

"Ummm...I did? Your girlfriend? Hello? Do you not want to go to prom with your girlfriend?" Toph asked somewhat annoyed.

"No no, it's not that. It's just I didn't even know that we were having a prom. I didn't hear anything about it."

Sokka looked confus...Sokka looked more confused than normal, "You didn't hear anything about it?! That's all anyone's been talking about lately! I'm going with Suki and Zuko already asked Katara. The only people we don't have confirmations from are you and Toph."

"Oh. Hmmm, I guess we've just been busy with stuff," Aang reasoned.

Sokka laughed so hard he spewed pizza roll all over Aang's bedspread. "Yes. I've seen you two get..."busy"...with stuff when you leave the door open."

Toph turned on Sokka and glared at him just long enough so that he knew what was coming. Before he knew it, Toph had seized his pony-tail and had swung him out of the door and closed it in one swift movement.

"You were just kind of waiting for an excuse to do that weren't you?" asked Aang.

"Yeah, kind of."

* * *

Just to make sure that Aang was okay, Toph said she'd stick around with Aang until Katara and Kana came back. She had finally gotten her parents' attention and they were out of town for what they vowed would be the last time for the next 5 months. So while Toph was excited to finally be getting through to her parents, she was going to miss so much alone time with Aang and she didn't want to waste this last chance to get out of her house without permission.

So for the next few hours, they hung out for a while and just talked about stuff going on with all their friends.

Finally though, Toph's curiosity got the best of her and she brought up the subject that they both knew was going to come up before she left.

"Soooo...you said you weren't going to prom?" she asked, "staring" at the floor.

"Now, I never said that. I made it very clear that I didn't know that there was prom."

"Cute excuse. But you can't lie to me. I know you were just too shy to ask me. You think I didn't know why you wanted to meet me by the tree last night?" Toph asked, confident she had figured him out.

"No Toph, you're wrong. I honestly didn't know that prom was coming up, and that's not why I wanted to talk to you at the tree last night."

"Hmmm...I'm not convinced, because I know that you only bring up the tree for special occasions. I'll buy your little story for the time being, but you have to tell me what the real reason was that you wanted to see me at the tree last night."

"It wasn't a big deal really," Aang stated, "Roku had banned me from seeing you, so I decided that I would break his rule because it was stupid."

"Why would Roku ban you from me?" Toph asked confused.

"Because I danced with Azula, which apparently is 'reckless.'"

Toph crossed her arms and stood up from the bed, giving Aang a weird "stare".

"What?"

"Oh come on. You honestly think there wouldn't be any repercussions for dancing with your mortal enemy!?" Toph asked him.

"She's not my mortal enemy!" Aang tried to defend himself. "She's just my mortal enemy's...spawn..."

"Well, excuse me Mr. Technical! Sorry to offend your dance partner!"

"Hey, you're getting off subject. Why are you so concerned with me knowing about prom?" Aang asked, already knowing the motives that he and Toph shared.

"Well...since you didn't know..."

"Toph, will you go with me to prom?" Aang asked, almost rolling his eyes at the strange formal feeling of the thing. It was like asking the dealer for the keys to the car after you bought it.

"Ummm...I'll have to thin-YES!!" Toph shouted glomping Aang in his bed with a forceful kiss. Luckily, it was over soon because Toph had landed hard on him, agitating the bruise on his back.

"So, how are we getting there?" Aang wondered.

"Oh, I already asked Sokka. Apparently Zuko is driving Katara on Iroh's Harley, so it leaves the back seat free for you and me." Toph informed him.

"Awesome...back seat..." Aang said slyly.

Toph laughed. "You're so naughty," she teased as she came back down on him, more gently as they kissed some more.

"Wait," Aang interrupted, "what about Sokka and Suki? They're going to ruin it by making fun of how 'oh so cute we are together'. Sokka won't be any better with his stupid sarcasm the entire ride."

"Actually, you'll only have to worry about it once. Sokka's going to Suki's house after prom, so he has to take us home alone while she picks up pizza for them," Toph explained.

"Ah, I see."

"Shot-gun!" Toph screamed out of nowhere.

"Wait a minute, why do you get to ride in the...passenger's seat..." Aang asked, trailing off in horrified thought at the end.

"Because you're too slow, ya old man!" Toph teased.

"Wait, wait, wait," Aang stammered as he stood up from the bed. He walked over to the door of his bedroom, turned around and looked into Toph's eyes. Then, he spoke to her in the most serious voice he had ever used before:

"Toph. Please, PLEASE tell me that prom is not on Saturday night."

"Ummm...I'm sorry? Yeah, it's on Solstice Saturday. That's even the theme of the prom is the solstice."

Aang said nothing.

"...Aang?" she asked.

But he had already walked out the door and out of the house. He couldn't stand to make her cry yet. Right now, it was his burden. Plus, she had a really pretty shirt on, and it would have been a shame for it to have gotten stained with both of their tears.

* * *

**A/N: Ummm...wow...expect more emotional stingers like this one, because aside from whatever Sokka I put in, there won't be much more humor as we are coming down to the wire.**

**I just got done with a huge discussion about the story with my beta, WaffledFlambe, and I am pretty settled on how the story will run its course from here on out. Still no approximate chapter count though, so I can't help you there. Also, still no decision on whether or not I will be writing a sequel. I've been struck in the back by plot lightning and I have been inspired to write a Jeong Jeong backstory. A really EPIK Jeong Jeong backstory. But if I get inspired to write a sequel, I would have to put the Jeong Jeong story on hold. So it's going to come down to an issue of priorities and I'm really not sure which one will win out in this battle.**

**Other than that, horray for WaffledFlambe being back from vacay. Yaayyyy...life.**

**RR&E**


	20. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

The night had finally gotten too cool for Aang as he decided to turn around and face his house. He had been out walking around the neighborhood for a few hours trying to clear his head and figure things out.

He walked in the door unnoticed by Sokka who was spread out on the couch as Craig Ferguson rambled along on the TV.

He trudged up the steps to his room and opened the door, but was shocked to see Toph still sitting on his bed. It was as if she had been patiently waiting for him the whole time.

"I figured you would have left by now," Aang said without much emotion.

"And I figured you would have been back by now," Toph said, returning the same inflection.

Aang sat down beside her but Toph didn't move.

"I know why you were so upset," Toph continued, an ominous feeling permeating through the room, "You found out when I was going to die, didn't you?"

Aang nodded.

"Just hug me."

And he did.

* * *

"Ok," Toph said as the two finally let go, "I know it's going to be hard, but tell me when it is."

"It's on prom night, the night of the solstice."

"How did you find this out?"

"Koh," Aang shuddered.

"What's a koh?" Toph asked.

"He's a knowledge spirit. A very dangerous knowledge spirit. I visited him while I was in the spirit world, and he told me that on Saturday night you'll die. And then I had a vision of Sokka's car smashed into the tree with your arm dangling out. I saw you dead Toph. I couldn't just come out and tell you that. You're the one that's dying."

Toph wasn't convinced. "Wait a minute though. If you already know that I die in Sokka's car, then I just won't ride in his car on Saturday night. Problem solved."

Aang shook his head 'no'. "I don't think it's that simple. Roku said that he would look into it, but I don't think that simply not riding in Sokka's car will solve anything."

"Well it doesn't change anything either. Even if it doesn't help as much as it would seem, I'm definitely NOT riding in his car Saturday."

"Well of course. I wasn't suggesting that you do. It's just..." Aang faded off.

"Just what?"

"I don't know if I'll be able to help you that night either. Saturday night is the solstice, and that's the night that me and Roku and all the other spirits on our side have to fight Ozai. I don't want to leave you alone, but I might have to if the battle proves to be as tough as Roku is predicting."

Toph pondered this for a minute. "Well, I'm assuming that the battle will start at midnight right? That's when these sorts of things happen."

"Roku told me to be ready at 11:30 to cross over into the spirit world," Aang explained.

"Well that's perfect. I can just have my parents pick us up early at ten. It's not like we're seniors or anything. We can just go next year. I'd much rather spend my next prom alive anyway."

They both chuckled. Aang loved Toph all the more in this moment because of her knack for making even these grim circumstances seem at least a little bit light-hearted. He missed the days back when they could just sit under the tree. Back when he didn't even know he had spirit world power, or that his best friend was going to die.

"So yeah, I'll just have my parents drop us off at five and pick us up at ten. Then they'll drop you off at your house and take me home. No harm, no foul. And I don't even have to go near Sokka."

"Wow, I never thought someone would need an excuse to go near Sokka."

They both chuckled as they embraced once more.

They lied back onto his pillow and Aang clicked the lamp off and hit the remote. Aang turned the volume down low as Craig Ferguson finished reading his last e-mail. Neither of them knew it, but they fell asleep in each other's arms simultaneously.

* * *

**A/N: Wow. It's been a while. Not much after such a long break, I know, but the next five or six chapters are all going to be good, so I wouldn't worry. Unfortunately, I've been so busy with school and other misc. things that writing the final chapters has fallen down on the priority list. I'll try to get a few out by the end of the month, but unfortunately, I can't guarantee anything :(**

**RR&E**


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